Treading Water

Dad and Miss
in NYC!











Each day for Dad has become a repeat of the last. There is not much going on...no physical therapy, no activity. We are all waiting for the meds to eliminate the small complications that have developed. Things are pretty boring at this time. A lot of television. A lot of nurse check-ups. A lot of visitors. Not a lot of news to report.



This has been very difficult on Dad. As most of us know, he has not gained much moss through his years. He is always on the go. Meetings, rounds of golf, basketball games, trips to Florida, South Carolina, California, Arizona, Wisconsin...and I think this is all in the last two years! Thus, having your life play out in slow motion is challenging for the spirit, the mind and the body. Dad has remained solid through all of it, but of course he is restless and ready to say good-bye to Riverside. Soon, we know, he will!



When Dad was about ten years old he had to go to Riverside, the same hospital he is in now, for a procedure on his leg. As a good Catholic boy, he had recently finished his religious education classes (CCD). As he entered the hospital he was greeted by a smiling employee who said "Welcome to Riverside Methodist Hospital." Dad's eyes widened in shock as he announced, "I can't come here...I'm Catholic!" His parents and the employee assured him it was OK for a Catholic boy to get help from a Methodist hospital. =) And now, I think Dad would be fine with never seeing the inside of Riverside again. Not for the lack of care, but as anyone knows...to stay in a hospital for an extended time as a patient wears on a person.