Give Blood

As you have read, I'm a worrier. I could recite a litany of Things-That-Could-Happen-To-You. When the kids were teenagers, they understood that, "Don't run with scissors," was shorthand for that list. They had been drilled. Bryan says he won't have to worry because I will.

I do see the rainbows, though. We have been abundantly blessed in our family. We are surrounded by children, their amazing spouses, and our precious grandchildren. Our circle of family and friends is wide and loving.

I absolutely believe that everything is going to be ok. The surgery is just a procedure. The recovery will not be more remarkable than many other surgeries that we all have had. (The Goads have recommended that we record Bryan's babbling when he's coming out of anesthesia. That will be fun.) We also want everyone to know that we don't think we're the only family with something Really Bad happening. But we do thank you all for all your letters and emails and calls.

Many of you have said that you would do ANYTHING to help us. Today the nurse told us that Bryan would probably need two units of blood. We tend to take that blood supply for granted. There is no reason or time for us to ask for specific donations of blood for Bryan, but we know that giving blood or platelets is a life-saving gift that is relatively easy to do. (They give you cookies when it's over!) So--if you're in the cadre of folks who meet the criteria and don't have a vaso-vagal reaction (faint, like I nearly did) then please consider going to your local Red Cross or hospital and donating a pint. You'll be saving somebody's life.

Today the nurse who shepherded us through the admission process took us to the hospital pharmacy for Bryan's pre-op meds. One of them was a single aspirin. On the way home Bryan wondered what we had paid for it. I pulled out the receipt. Zero. No charge. Good sign. We also saw a rainbow. But, as Karen told Erin before their wedding when she wondered about seeing Shaun before the ceremony: We're not superstitious, we're religious. See everyone later. Love you all.