– 17 – A rough life In the evening The soft lighting sprays warm highlights and shadows on the thirty three faces before me. I feel this loving mood has been set to help everyone forget about death for the next few hours. Everyone has terminal cancer except Pamela, our host, who is in remission.…
Category: We Want To Live Book
We Want To Live – Chapter 16 – Physiological damage
– 16 – Physiological damage Four-and-a-half months later in Beverly Hills, California Beatriz and I stand in our cantaloupe- and honeydew-colored kitchen. We drink a blend of orange juice we have just squeezed, raw egg and raw cream. I notice it is almost 2 p.m. We watch Jeff on the sofa bed in the living…
We Want To Live – Chapter 15 – Cellular reproduction
– 15 – Cellular reproduction Next day, Sunday, October 5th “I ii donn’t wannt taa usse the bed pan. Iii cann go ta the toiiilet,” Jeff says as he sits up. He slides his legs to the side of the bed. Margaret and I help Jeff position himself on the edge. We take him by…
We Want To Live – Chapter 14 – Dark motive revealed
– 14 – Dark motive revealed Next afternoon, Saturday, October 4th I walk down the hall past nurses, orderlies, patients, visitors and doctors on the way to Jeff’s room. “Aajonus,” the nurse calls. I stop and approach the nurses’ station. “My shift ends in about thirty minutes. Did you forget to tell me what Jeff…
We Want To Live – Chapter 13 – Jeff’s rehab begins
– 13 – Jeff’s rehab begins The next day, Friday; Back in Cincinnati I am feeling sprightly after my two-hour nap on the plane. I amble down the hall to Jeff’s new room. I enter, “Hi, kiddo, it’s Johnny! Direct from Los Angeles,” I say imitating the Johnny Carson Show. The room is empty of…
We Want To Live – Chapter 12 – Owanza’s Close Call
– 12 – Owanza’s close call As I park my car, I feel like I’ve left a dream. I take another deep breath and realize the air quality is bad. Here I am back in Los Angeles after a long day at the hospital, an hour’s drive to Cincinnati Airport (in Kentucky), a five-hour flight…
We Want To Live – Chapter 11 – Raw Nutrition
– 11 – Raw nutrition 5 a.m. Wednesday, October 1st “Aaet meeyout. Thaaa aaeeieesiint mi. Aaaeet meeeyooouut! Aaeeieesiint meeee! Aaaaeeet mmeeeeyooouuuss!” I leap from my chair, startled awake, “Easy, Jeff. No one is going to hurt you. I’m making sure of that.” “Aaaaaaat mmeeeeyooouuuut!” “Jeff, it’s okay. If you get too unruly, they’ll drug you.…
We Want To Live – Chapter 10 – Signs of Recovery
– 10 – Signs of Recovery I am in a lush tropical rain forest. I hear Jeff groaning. He sounds far away. I awaken from a dream to find myself in a chair at Jeff’s bedside. He thrashes about. With his left hand, he pulls at the boards binding both hands and arms. I look…
We Want To Live – Chapter 9 – Case History
– 9 – Case History Monday, September 29th Mary’s arrival wakes me. I reposition my numb and sore bottom on the chair. It’s 7 a.m. She and Ben go for coffee. Rather than awaken Jeff, I put honey/butter under his tongue. An attendant brings in a food tray. The nurse checks Jeff’s vital signs. Mary…
We Want To Live – Chapter 8 – Hopeless Prognosis for Jeff
– 8 – Hopeless Prognosis for Jeff I steer the car into my parents’ driveway. Their home is a few miles from the hospital and near a hill top overlooking the autumn-colored valley. The neighborhood is slightly more urbanized than the hospital’s. “Hi,” I say as I enter the house. Mom, Dad and Doug sit…