The Servant's Quarters

Sorry this update is going out so late. Blame a busy afternoon. Also, we just returned from visiting our friends, the Carlson's, on their homestead outside of Saline. Brooks and Kate invited us out for dinner and a much needed respite after the events of the past week. Thanks, guys. The burgers were great, and everyone had a wonderful time.

Praise God! Mom was released from the hospital this afternoon. The original plan had been for me to pick her up while Mark stayed home with Dad. However, we decided that her homecoming needed to have a little more style. So, Mark picked her up and drove her home in his new Jaguar S-Type instead. (What a gorgeous car. He gave me a chance to drive it shortly after he leased it. I don't know what I liked more. The driver in me loved the handling and the sporty drive. But the geek in me loved all the gadgets, especially the integrated GPS with the kewl map and audio driving directions. Good thing I'm not the jealous type. grrrrrrrrr)

This afternoon, right before leaving for the Carlson's, I got a chance to speak to her. Unfortunately, she was feeling some pain from the surgery. Also, she admitted that she's feeling the emotional pain of her loss for the first time. Today, she got a look at the site of the operation, and it was upsetting to her. (As you would expect.) To me, she sounded like she was doing about as well as could be expected, but she has definitely begun to feel the grief that any woman would feel after undergoing a mastectomy. Up until this point, she had managed to keep a good attitude and perspective, reminding herself that the cancer in her breast was killing her and she was better off without it. Coming face to face with her loss brought it home emotionally.

Please pray that Mom continues to heal quickly and is delivered from any pain from the surgery. Also, I'd ask that everyone lift her up as she struggles through the grief of losing a breast and through the process of coming to terms with her "new normal."