Just a bit of a note as I need to go eat lunch in a minute.
I went with friend, J. to my "backyard on the Parkway" this morning. It was really hot and we had sunblock out as we sat and greeted the day around 10 am.
My breathing was so good, and no coughing at 3175'. So next trip (probably tomorrow for sunrise) I may go higher, to acclimate myself to higher altitude gradually.
I discovered how upset/angry I had been that J. was not interested in discussing tests and doctor's opinions about her recently diagnosed sciatica and the bone spur on her spine.
She was more interested in brushing me off, saying "it's one day at a time." She kind of said back to me, "well, you have all these problems too."
What? Maybe she saw discussion of medical issues and treatment not as a scientific or intellectual interest, but as a failure!
Anyway, on the ride today I owned my personal discomfort whenever she said "one day at a time." I said I'd scream the next time she said it. And admitted that I was prone to wanting to help others, even when they may well not have wanted it. I'm a fixer. And the bottom line is that I support her in making her own decisions, and needed to tell her that.
Maybe that helped her see that I could still listen and not offer advice, and perhaps she could stop throwing platitudes at me! So the rest of our time was much more comfortable and she did share a bit of the things that are bothering her.
I feel quite badly that this woman who had been able to walk all over her neighborhood was now limping along just from car to a place to sit. She doesn't see herself with that big change. And I do hope this is very temporary, as she expects it to be. She does have physical therapy planned, hoping some movements will help.
So tomorrow I've challenged myself to go with T. up on the Parkway for sunrise. That of course means getting up before dawn....and I hate to set an alarm. Somehow just knowing it's set, I sleep badly. But the experience of the sun arriving again over our old mountains and valleys is definitely worth it. We did it last August, and found a lot of other people were there as well. I probably blogged about it too!
