Sunday, August 30, 2009

Do not go lightly...

I went to see my Gram this weekend. She's recovering from a bad fall.

Look at those adorable pink nails! She's 89 years old. Her health took a turn for the worse almost a year and a half ago, and I thought I would lose her that spring.

But she's very ornery.

So ornery, in fact, that she refuses to use a walker or cane. Because, I quote, "that's for old people". Did I mention the ornery?

She can be a real p.i.t.a., no question. She's going to be moving to a rehab facility. They think she'll be there a few months. I think seven weeks, tops. I think stubbornness is actually one of the best qualities you can have, as you age.

When she fell, she broke the C-something-2-something vertebrae in her neck. There are tiny pieces of sharp bone, floating around, and any movement, a fraction-of-a-fraction-of-a-fraction off in any direction, and she could be paralyzed; one of those shards could severe her spinal cord; she could be dead.

She fell in her bathroom. She dragged herself across the bathroom, through her bedroom, and out into her living room, where she laid for roughly three hours before she was found. I just have to sit here for a second, and ponder that. She dragged herself, with a broken neck, and she laid there for hours. Doctors are...befuddled. They shake their heads, and talk about miracles.

Irish angels, indeed.

I hold her hand, and I open my heart, and I silently beg her...to rage. Rage against the dying of the light. She's my Gram. I just can't picture a world without her in it.

7 comments:

  1. Your gram is amazing woman. She came here a couple of years ago and the first thing she did was take a walk around the neighborhood. Kelly and Moose tell of her love to dance. She is so full of life and proves that at 89 you have a lot of life left in you. I will think good thoughts for her speedy recovery but knowing your gram she doesn't need my help. I should save my thoughts for "old people".

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  2. Gram is indeed an amazing lady and should never be classified as old.She has spark that lights up a room.We could all take lessons.CW

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  3. I hope your Gram has a comfortable and speedy recovery. There is no better medicine than a good dose of "ornery"..lol! Love it!

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  4. Thank you, so much, for your kind words about Gram! She is doing well, already moved into the rehab facility...my mom went out this morning and she was eating breakfast in the cafeteria, with her neck brace on! There truly is no stopping her! I love that woman.

    (And Tra...I'm sure that's what helped your mom recover after her surgery! I think we may have picked up some ornery ourselves...hmmmm. lol)

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  5. Amen to what Betty said........all the very best to her, she sounds wonderful.

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  6. Thanks, Linda! She's doing better...but I think emotionally she's just realizing how long she'll be away from "home". If I've ever wondered why I'm so in love with all things home, I really needn't look further than my Gram.

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