Chapter 17

Road to recovery

I was woken up early the next morning by the doctor in charge, wanting to take a look down my throat (I think it was all of five AM, oh joy). He was shocked by what he saw. The lump was at least half gone. He explained that, never in his career, had he seen a lump the size mine had been, decrease so quickly. He was so amazed that he had other doctors from within the hospital come to check. I became the miracle patient.


Later I was moved to a new room, one even nearer to the newborns’ in the nursery, as if reminding me of how precious life is. I had a private phone and TV. The door to my room opened into a corridor that was wide open to the outdoors, no windows, just totally open. The smell of the flowers, the ones they use to make the flower-leigh necklaces, drifted into my room, as did an occasional bird or two.


The nurses were pleasant, and they had a permanent counsellor on staff that helped us get through the beginning of my recovery and the start of radiation. I was on a liquid diet, consisting of, chocolate, strawberry or vanilla milkshakes, (it was tough but someone had to have them,) till I was able to eat solid food again. After each radiation treatment, once I was able to walk again, myself and whoever was at the hospital with me at the time would go and look at the babies in the nursery next to my room, strengthening my desire to have children one day.


Within two weeks I was strong enough to become an outpatient and we were able to fall into a pleasant routine. Every morning at 6am we would go to the hospital for treatment, go out for breakfast, go window-shopping, go out for lunch, and go to the beach or for a walk, out for dinner, than to the apartment.

Although I had my energy back and was on the road to recovery I still weighed in at a scant version of my
earlier self.


To celebrate how well I was doing my parents bought me a little kitten. Deep golden eyes prompted me to name him Maui. He had jet-black hair, was a joy to be around, and was both playful and annoying. He kept us all on our toes. My Hawaii trip (excluding the daily radiation treatments) was turning out to be the honeymoon any young bride dreams about. I barely lost any hair, none that showed, even the nausea that was expected, didn’t show up. I stuck to an extremely healthy diet, a positive attitude, sight seeing and playing with my little kitten.

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