Needles

When I was a little kid I reacted quite dramatically to most things medical. Not that I was always scared but without warning I once had fainted watching my sister get a blood test. Even working as a unit clerk, watching my next door neighbor, a neurosurgeon, do a spinal tap on a co-worker's mom, I had to leave the room because the room began closing in on me! Mom even chastised me when I told her I wanted to go into nursing: "You better not, you'll faint," she said. 

No one but me knows how long it took me to start I.V's and give shots without flinching. If a person's veins looked challenging I would call a coworker down the hall in another unit and ask her help. Tiny, little scrawny veins were my greatest challenge.  To a Pediatric nurse, it was nothing!

So, where does this little story take me?  I just got my appointment for my Covid immunization for this upcoming week.  I have never looked forward to a "shot" as much as this one!  It seems to be the conversation of the day:  "Did you get your vaccine yet?"  

Then again, I have heard several tell me this week, "no, I'm not getting it."  I think back to when the polio vaccine was the main conversation a long, long time ago.  I don't think many balked at that one, so I really can't understand the thinking now.

So, it seems to me that the vaccine will open up the world to some sense of normalcy and we all know what we would like that to look like.  I know each person has their reason why they don't want this vaccine.  

Many couldn't understand what I went through every time I came near needles and medical procedures but I had to convince myself some how. It took years but I'm OK now.

Courtesy of Pixabay

So, hopefully, more will consider the vaccine.  I can't wait!  A lot of us can hardly wait and so many have come to new energy of hopefulness. Hopefully, we can be on a more normal path of living and socializing...and it will be a quicker journey if the majority of the population gets immunized.  

Prayers

This may be pertinent to those friends of mine who share a mutual friendship/acquaintance with one of my best friends, Jim Loersch. Jim was a social worker at Holy Family Memorial, Manitowoc, many years ago. We then were co-facilitators for the local grief groups for twenty-four years. 

Jim has been in an assisted living facility for several years, doing pretty good.  However, some weeks ago, he contracted Covid-19 but more importantly, because of his cerebral palsy, had challenging swallowing issues.  He has struggled with those concerns his lifetime. This has been exacerbated greatly now.

He has been discharged from the hospital but now is in a facility for rehab. After talking with his daughter and asking her about putting this information on facebook, in order to ask for your prayers for him, she thought this to be a good idea. She didn't want other information to be made public.

Jim has always been faith-filled and will appreciate all your prayers.  I plan to inform him and Lori both that you will be praying for him.  Thank you in advance from both of them! It is a hard time for them and the road ahead is a long one. 

Bed Mattress

 Thank you, Fr. Dave, for your homily this morning sharing about "pondering", saying, "Mary pondered all these things in her heart." I bet she had quite a chat with God during that time and the next thirty some years!  Yes, what are we pondering these days? 

Lately, I have been pondering buying a new mattress for my husband in his assisted living setting, since his has quite a depression in the present one making it impossible to assist himself up from lying down in bed.  Of course, it's just a few years old (many years) and it really is time. 

Lots going on all the way around with his physical health, including an upcoming move to a different room, too.  He is not too happy; he loves the set-up he's in just fine so this move is quite a jar to his peace of mind. 

Things like change are no easy matter, whether it was what Our Lord's mother was dealing with or what each of us deal with on a daily basis. We tend to think of the tail's side of a situation rather than the head's side. I think of the upside to that Christ-Child being born, celebrated just one week ago.

Our first inclination is usually not about the silver lining we might find in any transition, least of all when the sailing has been pretty smooth where we are.  I have had conversations about the benefits he will probably encounter with his new move; yesterday he admitted he was pretty "down but I'll be better tomorrow."

Courtesy of Pixabay

Yes, Mary was not the only one who pondered many things in her heart but just knowing I'm not alone, Jerry's not alone in heart issues related to transitions, I guess "pondering all these things" as changes occur means we're human.  Leaning on someone who is not human, like God, can certainly make it all a lot easier, especially  when we have a little chat with our God! It made buying a mattress so much easier; may as well get a whole new bed while I was at it!! 

Our Printer

 Lately, I have been sitting here trying to do computer work, updating files, ordering items online to avoid the stores and printing some things that will help me with taxes. I think I would rather shovel snow and mow acres of grass rather than this kind of work!

Just now I tried printing a calendar page and I got a note that says, "Printer not working." No good reason was given. I had just printed lots of stuff earlier and the printer usually tells me it's low on ink or out of paper but now what?

Courtesy of Pixabay

Hmmmm.  There are some days I would like to pin a note to the front of my own shirt that says, "printer not working!"  How about you?  Ever feel like everything is either shut down or wants to shut down? No good reason, just feel like our own "printer is not working!"  

Well, in the middle of typing this sentence, my cat, Carmel, crawled onto my lap, right in front of the computer, wanting some lap time. So, here I sat holding him for a few minutes. A good chuckle cures a lot of ails so a good hot bath is in my wheelhouse and at the same time the printer will get a look-see. 

Nothing major to fret too much about; there are bigger situations to get all hot and bothered about. So, even though a notice says, "printer not working" doesn't mean it is the end of the world or the end of a good day. At least I have a fur ball that crawls up on my lap and reassures me, "it'll be OK." What do you do when your "printer is not working?" 

It's a new year and we probably need ways to keep telling ourselves that it'll be OK, no matter what. Happy New Year to each and every one of you! Let's not let our "printers" put us out of commission for too long this year. It'll be OK!