Heidi ~ May 23

 

Five minutes to write. About to take my daughter, Kelly, to yet another doctor. This time to an ENT to look at the hole in the back of her throat left by a now defunct cancer tumor.  She has to swallow ever-so carefully or liquid and food gets backed up and one time a spoonful of peanut butter did stick in there cutting off her wind-pipe, the one that lets air into your lungs and she choked. She was alone.  By throwing herself over a chair the wad of sticky goo came out but it was close.  She now has some contraption that will suck out whatever you are choking on, if you can find it and use it properly and in time.  She tried to give me one of those things but I couldn’t imagine how I would ever use it so I gave it back to keep in her car, which she rarely drives since she is mostly sequestered from covid and glued to her couch by fatigue.  

 

But yesterday my best friend and her bright energetic daughter-in-law removed a mattress from Kelly’s apartment, the two mighty women, 70 and 40, piling the thing on the roof of a half car/half truck thing. They sent pictures where Niki, my friend, her tiny frame nearly disappearing under the mattress while Sefra secured it.  Sefra and Kelly met for the first time on the occasion of the mattress and both texted me how they loved each other.  “It was a love fest over here.” And so it isn’t all bad.