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Saturday, February 11, 2012

Life can turn on a dime

People think they understand how fragile life is, but I don't think they really get it until it's pushed into their face. I sure didn't.

My husband just went to having a pain in his shoulder that we both assumed was a pulled muscle (had that before) to fighting for his life because the abscess that was causing the pain had sent bacteria and toxins throughout his entire body. He was in ICU for a week, and will probably be in a regular room for at least another one.

I went from having a raw patch on my tongue that I assumed was from stress (had that before)to a diagnosis of oral cancer. As it's related to human papilloma virus and not tobacco, I've got a pretty good prognosis. I'll know more when I see the oncologist next week.

When my father died, it was a long, drawn-out process. But I have a friend who was sitting in the living room talking to her mom, who suddenly put her hand over her heart, said "Oh, my," and was gone.

It's impossible to seriously live each moment as if it were your last. We have jobs to go to, bills to pay, and every couple and family has disagreements. I'd rather be lying on a beach drinking Pacifico with lime than going to work most days. Even though I nearly lost my husband, he still has habits that grate on my nerves. Some people have a brush with death and are completely different people, others of us just carry on in the same old way.

But maybe just a bit more aware that our lives are like soap bubbles.

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