[2020-08-27] Preparations
I could not have scripted a better day before surgery.
Early this morning, I woke to the most beautiful sunrise I had seen in years. Later in the morning, a friend sent me a photo of the sunrise from her vantage point. Her sunrise included double rainbows, which she said are a symbol of hope. I took both as a positive sign.
I spent the morning packing for my weekend at the hospital, using a list of suggestions from my niece. To pace myself, I interspersed my packing with reading and responding to messages. Many people wrote to share their own list of things that make them happy, such as finding new napkins, stepping on ice that forms on a puddle in the springtime, or discovering a new artist. Others wrote to share music and videos, best wishes and compliments (my favourite: "you are like sunshine, we all need a little").
In the afternoon, I received a visit from my brother. I think that it was as comforting for him as it was for me. We were soon joined by my mom, sister and nephew. My deck is well laid out to enable social distancing without feeling like we're so far apart that we're not really interacting.
My mom turned 82 today. It was so nice to have this time together to celebrate her and to just enjoy each other's company.
My sister brought me a gorgeous bouquet of flowers from her garden. They are so cheery. And they're sitting atop a new corner table that my amazing new husband built for me.
During our visit, a gift of a bonsai tree, sibling teddy bears and chocolates arrived—a gift from my ADM's Office. My staff are amazing. We enjoyed the chocolates.
I gave one of the two teddy bears to my daughter. She called hers CC (short for Cookies and Cream) and I called mine BB (short for Butterscotch Bear). My daughter and I have an unbreakable bond, which is symbolized by our tiny teddy bears.
After my visit, I came in to find that a friend had delivered homemade cookies and fluffy socks, along with a beautiful card. My husband passed along the hug that my friend had said was part of her gift. Another friend sent a card and jewelry through the mail, because "every woman deserves a little bling." I felt the love.
My husband made us a lovely dinner, which the four of us enjoyed.
After responding to more messages this evening, I sat down to write this post. My musical inspiration was the growing playlist on Spotify called CPAB's Songs for Jen. (CPAB is the name of my work organization.) If you have Spotify, I encourage you to check it out. Today's favourite tracks: "Shine" by Take That (inspiration for the quote below), "Badass Woman" by Meghan Trainor, and "Confident" by Demi Lovato. So empowering.
My arrival time at the hospital tomorrow is 8:45 a.m. My surgery is scheduled to run for 2½ hours, so my guess is that it will run from 9:30 to 12:00.
I feel so blessed to be surrounded by so much love, encouragement and positive energy. You have all sent me off into this first major step in my treatment with my cup full. I am so grateful. 💝
