Two weeks ago my wife was in Riverside Methodist's cardiovascular intensive care unit, a little over twelve hours removed from laying unconscious on an operating room table with her sternum separated and heart stopped.
Yesterday she helped me clean the house.
Nothing strenuous, mind you; dusting furniture, washing dishes and the like. Still, up and around, doing normal household chores.
She's getting back to being the Energizer Bunny. Never sitting still for too long, always doing something, but I am keeping a very close eye on her. Stacy is well aware that she'll yet have physical limitations for some time and knows not to overdo things.
I am amazed, both by modern medicine and my bride's ability to bounce back.
We were very fortunate on surgery day; the surgeon was able to repair her balky mitral valve rather than replace it entirely. I didn't particularly care for the possibility that she might have a pig's heart valve in place of the one God gave her.
Currently she's sitting at the dining room table, reading her morning devotionals while picking at a blueberry muffin and sipping on a hot cup of Tim Horton's black gold. Her home visit nurse stopped in yesterday, checked her over and was very satisfied with her progress; same with this past Monday's visit to her surgeon's office in Columbus.
One thing Stacy isn't happy about is her recent weight gain...a whopping four pounds. There's good reason for it, though: every day since she came home a mere four days after cardiac surgery, friends and family have stopped by and dropped off all manner of food. It either means she has a lot of people who love her or they were afraid she'd wither away due to my lack of culinary skills.
You can only survive for so long on bologna sandwiches and hot dogs.
We have certainly been very blessed throughout this chapter of our lives and will be eternally grateful to everyone who's made this journey with us.
God, my friends, is very good.
