Welcome back to SOLO at SIXTY!
What a difference a week makes! Last Wednesday, my older daughter took me to UVA Hospital for my 2nd knee surgery in 6 months. And hopefully the LAST! This one was much easier and less invasive than the April surgery on the other knee. And I had a new name this time! Every time they called for “Ms. Holcomb” I thought of my momma… that is her name! But now, it is also mine (and my younger sister’s). I also thought of my momma when they put a big yellow FALL RISK band on my arm. At least I did not get the DNR band (Do Not Resuscitate – though Mom thought it meant she wanted DINNER!)! My mom had both of these when she broke her hip.
So just to keep it short (like me!), the surgery went well… had to arrive 2 hours (1 pm) before surgery with no food since the night before and no liquids for the previous 2 hours. The no food didn’t bother me, but the no drinking rule was HARD. (Couldn’t even have water!) Of course I had a lot of questions for the doctor before surgery: Crutches? Only if needed. Shower? Not for 2 days (Oh geez!). Driving? As long as not on pain meds. (Not a problem there!) Running? Very soon. (Thank you Lord!) Oh, and can I drive to Chapel Hill Saturday for the Carolina-Duke Football game? You can go but don’t drive alone that far. (My doctor went to UNC undergrad, Harvard Med School, UVA residency.) New plan – my older daughter said she would be bringing my granddawg to her other grandmother’s Friday for the weekend, and she would spend the night with me, take me to the game, bring me home, and spend Saturday night with me as well. After all, she had to pick up my granddawg on Sunday. Lots of wonderful SOLO time with my daughter… not complaining one bit! Silver lining…
“In every dark cloud, there truly is a silver lining. To find the silver linings in your challenges, shift your perspective.”
I walked out of the hospital without crutches. Seriously. Had them at home ready to use, but did not need them. Took one pain pill Wednesday night and that was it. Had a fun sleepover with my daughter and sent her on her way to work Thursday morning assuring her I would be fine and would not venture out. A sweet friend brought me dinner and visited Thursday night. And did you know that the Hallmark channel AND Lifetime channel started showing Christmas movies during the day? YEP! That’s what I did while at home Thursday!
Friday it was back to work where I found a bottle of wine on my desk. Nice thing to come back to work to! Elevated and iced my knee while at my desk. Physical Therapy in the afternoon (no time to dawdle!). My physical therapist unwrapped, straightened, and bent my knee, and I got to rock the NuStep again for 12 minutes. Woohoo! Left with a list of exercises to get my knee working. On the road to recovery and regaining my life, once again. Headed home to wait for my older daughter to arrive for dinner and another sleepover.
“Recovery is a process. It takes time. It takes patience. It takes friends…”
My daughter and I left Charlottesville pre-dawn Saturday for the Carolina game, stopping by Chick Fil A on the way in to Chapel Hill to get breakfast minis for the early part of the tailgate. Arrived to find my son-in-law already had the tailgate set up. We like a certain spot in the Skipper Bowles lot and he likes to get there early to make sure we get it. And we always do! Added a second tent this season. Younger daughter arrived shortly thereafter. She and I walked up to the student store to see what was new. I struggled a bit on the stairs, but walked without a limp, even with my knee still wrapped. Iced it back at the tailgate.
“Too many people miss the silver lining because they were expecting gold.” Maurice Setter
Besides being homecoming and playing Duke, Saturday’s game was special in that “old” lettermen had been invited. My roommate from college married one of these “old” lettermen and had texted they would be at the game. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other, even though our mommas are at the same assisted living. They found us after half time. Loved catching up with them! And boy did they picked a great game to come to. To say Saturday was a GDTBATH (Good Day To Be A Tar Heel!) is an understatement! The emotional pendulum was swinging high both ways in the final minutes of the game. Leading by 3 and on the 5-yard line ready to score with only 3 minutes left in the game, we fumbled. Duke blazed down the field to the 2-yard line with 14 seconds left in the game and no reason not to score. Seemed a foregone conclusion we would lose again. I mean, how could they not score? But they attempted some trickeration, did NOT score, and instead threw the ball right to one of our players. Game over. Heels WIN! The Victory Bell is back where it belongs – in Chapel Hill, soon to be Carolina blue once again! As always, we stayed to the bitter and very sweet end. Winning, and winning in such a surprising way at the end of the game, was the best feeling! Our ride home was much happier than expected.
“This is what I believe to be true. You have to do everything you can, and if you stay positive, you have a shot at a silver lining.” The Silver Linings Playbook
My older daughter and I listened to all the post-game commentary in the car on the way home, and after we lost the local FM channel, we switched to XM and my sweet girl said, “Ok Momma, we can listen to Christmas music, I know you are dying to.” It was before November 1st, the date my kids limited me to begin listening to Christmas music years ago, but the Hallmark Christmas Channel is now playing on XM 70 and it was heavenly! Plus, we had watched a Hallmark Christmas movie the night before, so we were in the mood, so to speak. Or maybe, she was so happy we won that she was just feeling generous. As I have said before, I have the BEST kids!
“The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.” Oprah Winfrey
So…it has been an amazing week y’all. Surgery, a success. Carolina football, a victory. Time with my daughters, the BEST! Missed my son, but I’ll see him soon. Christmas music 24/7 on XM radio as well as Christmas movies on Hallmark. Silver linings abound. One of those weeks where there is much to be thankful for. Weeks are not always this wonderful, but when they are we need to capture the feelings and savor the moments. Store them up for the weeks when things are not as smooth, when obstacles try to block our paths, and things try to bring us down. We have to remember that those times will come and they will also pass, and we will soon be celebrating the good times again. Like the Victory Bell returning to Chapel Hill, Silver Bells and silver linings come back in our lives. Look for and treasure the silver linings, because as we all know, none of us is promised tomorrow.
“May you always find the silver lining in every cloud…” Irish Blessing
Best,
Leslie
PS – Happy Halloween! And don’t forget to set your clock back an hour Saturday night. Ahhhh… we get an extra hour of sleep which will be heavenly considering our game this week is a night game and against UVA. And it is in Chapel Hill! Got a big dinner riding on this game!
SOLO at SIXTY 