The celebration on Friday started with a walk to a near by restaurant. The sun was out and it felt fantastic to be able to stretch my legs. Those opportunities to get out and walk are few and far between when you live here. Being able to go for a walk was such a nice present. After lunch I came home and took a nap, another treat. For dinner the whole gang went to a restaurant that serves one of my favorites; nachos! We had a great time, laughing, eating and drinking with no or very little talk about work. I haven't laughed that hard in a very long time. We spent a lot of time comparing those "not-in-Kansas-anymore" stories. These are the real stories and if we shared them people would really wonder why we are here.
Saturday the celebration was going to continue with brunch at a fancy hotel. Except last minute we were placed on travel restriction and couldn't go. I could slowly hear the air leaking out of my birthday balloon. We rallied, ordered pizza and watched a movie. Not a bad way to celebrate but I was disappointed. In hind-sight there was some divine intervention, later on Saturday that hotel was hit by a rocket. I don't know if we would have still been there. I didn't hear how bad the damages were and I'm not sure if there were any casualties. Either way, it helped put my disappointment over my birthday plans in perspective.
Today one of my nurses, her husband died and now she is a single mom. He was admitted over the weekend and had been chronically ill for a long time. Today I made time to stop by and check in. As the day progressed I could tell he was getting worse and it wouldn't be much longer. With my very limited language skills, I really had no idea what to say. All's I had to offer was a hug.
I'm not sure what the customs are for funerals but I can tell you that grief is the same. It was heartbreaking to see the family lamenting outside the hospital as he was placed in the car. The poor son, fell to his knees and sobbed in the grass. Back home, I'd bake something and bring it to her house. Maybe even a group of us would plan how many nights to bring meals over. I wonder what people do here to show their support. I'll ask some of the staff in the morning but for now, I wish/hope she has the support she needs.
Keep Smiling?
