the dearest of friends.....

Six years ago, I would not have even thought about driving to a hospital to visit anyone unless taken by force! Early this week, I was browsing facebook status updates when a dear friend of mine (and one of the last few left in the Albany area) posted something about being stuck in the hospital and being bored to tears. Upon verifying the exact hospital, I put some 'real clothes' on, took a deep breath, and said a prayer for her (and my driving skills in downtown Albany). I called Mer to let her know I was coming so if I didn't make it she could send out the search party. I made it to the hospital, found a parking spot in the parking garage (they terrify me because they tend to be confusing and tight and people go way too fast in circles while in them, they seem like 'organized choas'). I used my memory strategies for finding the Jeep again. I took a picture on my cell phone of the floor and staircase number, as well as noting I walked past several handicap spots on the way to my parking location! Since I had been at St Peter's before to visit family with Nate, at least I had some ability to find the Main Entrance even though it is under construction. I ask the kind ladies at the info center for the room number. She kindly wrote it down on a small piece of paper for me. I tease that I have a 'red flag' hanging over my head, letting people know I am going to need a little extra help!! She tells me to follow the signs to elevator H. Now that is great but the second I walk past the sign I can't remember for the life of me which way the arrow was pointing. Thankfully, the signs are close enough together that the next one is in sight. I found the floor and my friend's room! Upon arrival we laugh about how I will never find my way back out of the hospital.I found her so bored she drew every tile of the roof across the street, yup counted and drawn with great accuracy. 'Mer' and I went to college together and were even on a soccer team together and, while we liked each other, we never really got to know each other well. We were both very different girls than the ones we are today! Both in our 30s now living through some serious medical conditions unusual for our age and overall health! We even discovered we both HaTe throwing hay!!! I think Dr. Seuss says it best "...Nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. ...That enables you to laugh at life's realities." Mer and I both look at life through the 'wrong end of a telescope' and I find great joy in being able to laugh about it with her in a way most other people can't. Please join me in praying that next week Mer's procedure would be successful and without complication!!