Moments D729: Focused Treatment

Today's moment is all about my shoulder.  It's been giving me grief for nearly 5 weeks now.  It irritates me all day and while I generally get some relief at night there have been a few nights where I wake in the middle of the night from the pain.

I've been good about letting it rest.  I haven't played volleyball in 4 weeks.  That's torturous to me.  I really, REALLY miss playing.  It really hasn't been easy to lay low and let this craziness pass.

Today, I visited my favourite RMT ever.  (Total side bar, but I've followed Sarah throughout her career. If you ever need a good, deep massage, Sarah is the one to connect with!)

Today's appointment was the second in as many weeks in the hope of killing this pain.  This evening Sarah focused 90% on my pained shoulder and neck in the hopes of really digging in and working out the congested muscle tissue.

Wow, what a treat it was to have her so focused on my shoulder and its issues.  We (well, technically she) dug into areas on my arm, armpit and shoulder that we've never before focused on.  It  was interesting to experience the shift in my pains and feel the muscles releasing.  There was much pain, breathing through the pressure points and then relief.  After an hour, it was amazing how much of the overall pain had disappeared.
While I was surprised at the time she spent focused on my should and neck, I was very much appreciating the relief post treatment.  Sarah gave me homework to do to help keep my muscles stretched and open.  The most interesting concept was "nerve flossing".

Yes, that sounds kind of painful, doesn't it?

But it's not, not any  more than a deep stretch can be from time to time.  This was the video I learned from to do my homework.  So far, so good.

Moments appreciating some relief from my pain through treatment.
Moments being thankful for having the ability to seek treatment for my pain.

Moments D728: When the quiet settles in

Today Heini came home from her family and duties keeping her busy since her father's death. I've kept in touch with her over the past week and a half and she's been strong and focused. She's been busy with the details and making sure everyone was okay.
And now, it was time for her to return home and dive back into her life. 

EQ & I picked her up from the airport and as soon as she saw us I could see the tears in her eyes. She swore at herself for breaking down, saying "....for F!@* sake, I was talking about the death of my father on the plane just fine!"

But that's different. That's still somewhat removed.

Now, now she is home, being hugged by people she knows and loves. Now she's heading home to dive back in, as though things were the same as before, only they are no longer the same as before.

I don't know what it's like to lose a father, I am fortunate in that mine has fought through his various illnesses over the years. I can tell you being this close to Heini's pain has had me pause and think about that moment and it's one that I can not easily imagine. On some level, there must be a feeling of being lost. (At least for me it would manifest that way.)

Knowing that my dear friend would be struggling upon her return to "real life", EQ and I stopped in for one last check in with her kitty before we headed to the airport to pick her up. Of course kitty received the royal treatment, food, water, cleanup and some love. But we also left Heini a surprise in her refridgerator: A pretty bouquet of flowers with a card to remind her just how much she is loved, appreciated and that she was not alone.

After a tearful dropoff and an exhange of hugs EQ and I made our way home for a late dinner. Only a few minutes into our drive home did we receive her text thanking us for the flowers and supportive words. In her darkness, she was smiling.

Job done.

As the quiet settles in, I can only hope in the days to come that she finds a small sense of comfort when she looks to the flowers. She is not alone.

Moments celebrating the life of an amazing man.
Moments celebrating the life of his amazing daughter.

Moments D727: Ishtar (prounced Easter)

Today was Easter and, like most families on this long weekend, a chunk of mine gathered to enjoy dinner together. Unlike those celebrating the religious holiday of Easter this weekend, my family simply celebrated life and family.

I suppose that's what we've always done come to think of it. It's not so much about the religious holiday, but about family time.

Today we had rambling discussions about religion, life and death. Interesting given that today is Easter Sunday. But today's moment was when EQ shared the concept of Ishtar with my parents. Oh, that was a funny moment. Ishtar, is a Sumerian, East Semitic Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of love, war, fertility, and sexuality. There are theories that Easter has roots in celebrations of Ishtar, afterall What do eggs and bunnies have to do with a ressurrection?

The comment didn't linger long before my Dad smacked my Mom's forearm and said, "How long have you known this and been withholding from me?"

Of course, we all fell into giggles as we watched my Mom's face turn from pink to a bright glowing red.

Celebrating fertility and sex - yes, that would make Mom blush.

Moments enjoying time with the family.

Moments sharing silly theories and lots of laughter.

Moments D726: Home Cooked Goodness - worth the wait

Today EQ & I planned on a lazy day and then to head to my parents to enjoy the rest of the holiday weekend with family. The Plan: Head home after dinner.

My Mom, on the other hand, had other ideas and she can be very persuasive. Her expertise: she great at finding good reasons for us to join them earlier. (How can you blame her, it's been over a month since we last saw them and the last couple of weeks I've been very MIA studying for my final.) In the end, how could we really say no to a home cooked meal when, afterall, "we have to eat something for dinner"?

And so, we headed out earlier than we had anticipated.

I am so very glad that we did.

The drive out was beautiful as we enjoyed the end of a pretty spring day.

And today's moment really was an amusing one. It was dessert.

Many moons ago the four of us were talking about desserts and at some point the topic turned to how incredible my Mom's pumpkin pies were. To date, EQ has never had the pleasure to enjoy a slice.

Tonight that changed.

After enjoying a very full meal (read that's two platefuls of home cooked goodness), my Mom asked if we were ready for dessert. I could see that EQ's eyes were half glazed over from the big meal he had eaten and I chuckled to myself in anticipation.

He didn't realize it, but I had warned him earlier that my Mom had made something special just for him.

He didn't make the connection, until he went to say no for dessert.

I watched the scene unfold:

Mom: "Are you sure you don't want dessert? I made it especially for you."
EQ: "Oh. [Pause] I'm so full.
Me: "What have you been asking for for months?"
EQ's eyes light up. He pushes his not quite finished plate of potatoes aside and says "Why didn't you tell me sooner. I'm done. I'm ready for dessert."

It was very, VERY amusing.

After his second piece of pumpkin pie, he turned to my Mom and said, "Yes, worth the wait."

Moments tweaking plans to make it home in time for a home cooked meal.

Moments sharing a surprise for dessert that was "worth the wait".

Moments D725: Connecting at the airport

Today I picked up EQ from the airport. It's been far too long since I last saw him.

Typically I pick him up outside of the terminal doors, but today I arrived a touch earlier than I had expected and my last piece of information from him was that the custom's line was quite long. In a flash I decided to surprise him inside the terminal and I went to park the car.

Of course, finding an actual parking spot took me longer than I had anticipated. As time ticked away, I became anxious that I'd miss EQ inside the terminal. As I jogged into the building and down the escalator to the arrivals level, I still hadn't heard from him and I thought to myself "phew, I made it".

I entered into the arrivals area and my phone dinged at me. Of course it was EQ. I didn't even reach into my pocket for the phone, I simply scanned the arrival area a little harder. I was determined not to miss him! I scanned and scanned as again around the arrivals entrance. Just as I finished the second scan of the room, I saw him quickly heading toward door. He was just about the exit the building!

And so I ran, bouncing around the people in my way. I caught up to him from behind just as he exited the the terminal doors. I put my hand on his shoulder, he turned, dropped his bags and swooped me into his arms.

Now that is an exciting reunion!

We stood like that, in silence, arms wrapped around one another for what seemed like an eternity in a blink of an eye.

Sometimes, the universe is on my side. Today was one of those days. I am thankful I caught him and surprised him as I did.

Moments setting up a last minute surprise, even though tight for time.

Moments connecting "just in time".

Moments D724: Childhood Pet Memories

Today on my drive into work I saw a man stopped with his dog on the side of the road. That's a pretty typical scenario, and I thought nothing of it, until I slowly rolled closer to the scene.

As I slowly crept in traffic, I had a chance to watch this beautiful golden retriever play with very large tree branch. The tree branch looked like a small tree in and of itself and this dog was whipping its head back and forth with this "tree" hanging from its mouth.

That made me smile and think back to my childhood and the dogs we had when I was growing up. I remember them both doing similar things and always enjoying their pleasure with shaking branches bigger than themselves. I swear, if the dogs could smile, they would have been!

A silly moment, but one that not only made me smile, but it had me remember days when I was a young lass.

Those were good, simple days.

Moments smiling at silliness.

Moments enjoying memories from your childhood.

Moments D723: SURVIVED

Today I wrote the final exam for a class that I never thought I'd have to take. (It was a course that was not required curriculum when I started my degree part time years ago, but now, over time it's become part of the curriculum.)

I actually managed to have enough time to finish the exam (unlike our midterm where I felt very short and didn't finish the exam!) and as I walked away from that class room for the last time this semester, I could help but feel a sense of relief.

I had survived. I will pass this course, no doubt about it.

Done.

Next?

Moments feeling good about all the work you put in to survive.

Moments enjoying that second where relief sets in.