Chile 2002 Day Two: The Long Road





Well, I have had some days off from this blog. The reason is a rather serious pain in my back that makes it almost impossible for me to sit at my computer for more than 5-10 minutes. But solving that problem, but not the back pain, I am returned!

 

Many things to think about while recovering from a setback. The one thing that really strikes me, as it did seven years ago, is that no matter how many people, family, friends, medical staff there is to hold your hand, this little adventure into personal health reform is a solo expedition, and if you don't get your head clear the recovery and one's mental state of mind suffers. That isn't to say support is needed, if not essential, but when you are in the operating room and they put that plastic mask over your face and tell you to breathe deeply, it's you that's breathing deeply, and it's you that suddenly has become a lab specimen for the next five hours.

Campsite, Chilean Coast 2002 - first night

And, when you come out of the delirium of drugs that keep you knocked out, the scars, bruising and otherwise new arrangement of organs and topography of your body is your own little reality to come to terms with.

 

When I was in Chile in 2002 the sense of being alone was dramatic, as the long road up the Pacific Coast saw no traffic, and the Pan-American Highway stretched tightly along the bluffs that lined the coastal road.

 

 The thing that really gripes me is that I will not recover as fast as I would like too, what an inconvenience. It's one thing to have one's life saved by the intervention of medical science, their ability to dig into your chest, in this case my chest, and take a mulligan on the ninth hole and replumb some arteries that were otherwise in-op. However, on top of that, to have to wait to get back to normal operating form, well, I am impatient for that to occur.





Because of that impatience, I overdid it somewhat yesterday. While I am walking a pretty good distance, I decided to throw in a small hill to test my ability.

 

Not Good, Kimoshabee.

 

Sucking wind by the time I got to the top of the incline.

 

So, what seemed to me a recovery on track for my own vision of when and what was going to happen, I recalled the long road up the Chilean coast...long, lonely, and one really has to pace themselves to get to where they are want to be. Sometimes, even superheroes have to take a step back and readjust their view of things.

 

So, still here, and trying to slow down so that my recovery stays on track, a singular road with no detours until I am back to normal, whatever that means.