I am very much a routine person. And when one of my routines is interrupted, it leaves me unsettled. I like to think that I can be spontaneous, but then along comes a day like yesterday and I realize how much I depend upon things being "my normal".
The trouble started the night before. Something I did on Monday, or maybe even on the weekend, set an arthritis episode off in my shoulder. In the past, that shoulder has acted up severely, leaving me totally incapacitated for days. That hasn't happened in a long time...maybe even 20 years.
This is the same shoulder that was dislocated and the same arm that was broken in two places on our Mexico/Guatamala trip two years ago. So, when I began to feel an old familiar pain in it, I took an Ultracet before I went to bed Monday night. During the night, I popped another one, without eating anything. I know better, but I didn't want something to eat in the middle of the night.
My usual Tuesday routine is this: I go to Curves at 8 a.m., then meet my pastor friend at our favorite supermarket where we have coffee, share problems, then read Morning Prayer. One week we read from the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer and the next week from the Presbyterian Book of Worship (she's a Presby). We both look forward to this time together each week.
After our morning prayers, she goes her way and I do my food shopping. Tuesdays those of us over 62 years of age get a 5% discount, which make keeping this routine very worth it.
This Tuesday began OK; I went to Curves, feeling a little nauseous, but OK. My friend was going to be late at the supermarket, so I read and planned my shopping list, getting sicker and sicker by the minute. Finally, I knew I had to get home. I didn't make it; I was sick in the bathroom at the store.
I left a message on my friend's phone and dashed home. There I slept for two hours, soundly. This is unheard of for me. When I woke, I felt a mite better, so I went back to the market and did my shopping.
The rest of the day is a blur. I remember going to the hospital to see one of my dear elderly men from the 4th Street Cafe'. I brought him Holy Communion and we talked for a while. He is so lonely and not recovering as fast as he should from pneumonia. He's worried about that (and so am I).
Now I feel there is a hole in my week. I didn't get to see my friend, and my Tuesday prayers were spent hanging over the toilet in the supermarket. This morning my shoulder is much better. I wish I could do Tuesday over again. :-)
I'm off to Curves again. Today I want to bring HC to another elderly friend who is recuperating from that same pneumonia at her daughter's home. Wednesday is my day to vacuum, etc., but I will happily give up that routine to see Madeleine, who is in her 90's.
I guess the truth is, only SOME routines are important to me!
Life is good, even when routines are interrupted. Thanks be to God.
The March winds are at it with a vengeance today. We are supposed to get heavy rains, also, which will make the flooding in the creeks worse. The news last night showed over-flowing creeks creeping up to nearby yards.
Luckily, we don't have to worry about the lake, as close as it is. The water level can be controlled by a power dam downstream in the City. If it ever DID flood, we are all in trouble!
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