Saturday, August 16, 2008

Hello Tomorrow

My legs were crossed, all lady like, and my right sneakered foot was just~a~swingin' in tandem with hers, crossed at the knee. We were keeping mad time together. Pacing in place. The lobby was full... Broken lives hooked to IV poles, held up by other's... faces blank, tired, scared, old~schooled. Hugs and how~to~do's were quietly passed in "shhhhhhhh.....we're in church now" fashion. I flipped through the pages of the Reader's Digest so fast and hard, it sounded like I was shufflin' poker cards, and I concentrated on making that same sound over and over again.
.
And then they called her name. For a moment I wasn't sure I could walk without having my legs crossed, right one swinging. What other nervous tic could I develop that would be socially acceptable? And hide my fear..... What other nervous tic could I invent that could pass off for strength? How was I going to catch her when she collapsed? And who would catch me?
.
He smiled. That handsome Doctor smile. Babyesque brown eyes, old already. Lips curled just enough to make you wonder who his Dentist was, and why on earth he chose to practice this type of medicine. Why on earth he didn't want to be a Soap Opera Star....
.
She had been summoned here. To this room at this time with these people. For the news. We waited. He talked. Drew pictures. Circled foreign words on endless reports. Nodded his head up and down as if we understood. And then we did. Sweet Jesus! Remission! Gone! Poof! Not there! Unremarkable scans. Nothing here, there, over there, in that.....crawling, corrupting, eroding. Nothing!


.
We stood in the parking lot, in the rain, and cried. Laughed. Hallelujahed the sky! Tried to dial numbers. Skinny's. Papa's. The kids. The boys. And then we decided to party.....
.
.\And we know how to party.....
.
Thursday night, Friday night....into the wee, wee hours. At 4'oclock this morning, I fell into bed. Kimbies curled up like a rolly poly on my little living room couch. Her dancin' boots in a heap, her little blue bandana

still on her noggin'.....
.
And I slept like I've never ever slept before....
.
In peace.
.
With Stevie Ray Vaughan there in the shadows, whispering lullabyes for the soul......
.
And Tomorrow, just outside the window....
Smiling...






17 comments:

eric1313 said...

Riviera Paradise, baby. That was one of the songs, wasn't it?

I love turning on this page and reading this.

Kimbies will be your sunshine forever more. Lets write some time soon.

eric1313 said...

clink!

skinnylittleblonde said...

GILYBSVFM

~Babs said...

And that Sistercircle, still unbroken.
Precious words.

I'm ecstatic too,,,
Big bear hugs to all of you!

One in my own Sisterhood had the big scarey biopsy last year.It's awful holding your collective breath
Waiting, waiting and circling,gearing up for the results,,,,,and screaming into the cell that it's all OKAY!
All done.
Over.
The end. I know,,,,

singleton said...

Eric....
She is the sunshine! Always has been, always will, but now....for the first time in 2 years.....she is Free Sunshine....
12 weeks without the Handsome Doctor.....
And so
we danced and
danced
and
danced....
Feel the love....

Sweetsisterlove.....
Oh Gawd, I miss you! See those red cups raised? Clink! Tink! Come a day, sweet sister, Come a day....

Babs....
I remember too, your recent scare....and then good news to the circle...It's so frightening. Time stands still. Hovers. Waiting for the crash. We've been praying for this day since day one. And now, finally..... the gift! Yeah! We couldn't jump up and down high enough!

Peace~love friends
and
Tomorrow,
the Gift.....

Shimmerrings said...

Oh, Sing, this one made me cry! Even more when I got to the Stevie Ray part! Why, he's probably guardin' the pearly gates! Here's to life! Here's to sisterhood! Here's to Sunshine!

kj said...

oh jeez. this is fantastic. i'm crying along with shimmerings. what a %%$#@ relief. i am so happy for you and kimbies and your family. and of course your words sparkle with love and hope.

Scott from Oregon said...

Awesome!

singleton said...

Shimmerings....Thank you sister! May we all raise our hands to the sky and say amen! And about those pearly gates, I bet you just might be right!

KJ.....Thank you, thank you. We are lovin' life right now! It's been the week of miracles.....

Scott....Isn't it just the best, the very,very,very best?

Peace~love Friends
And Thank you

Maithri said...

Here I am
counting
teardrops
falling
from tired
eyes

I had one
of those
days today

Where you give
and give till your cup
is almost dry
and
"They"
still
arent
satisfied..

On
those days
its easy
to forget

that
fragrant joy
exists

breathes

opens soft,
wild wings
and soars

along another shore...

And how glad
I am
dear sister

that its your
shore
that she's
flying across
today...

May she build
her nest
in the circle

and protect

this sisterhood
of passionate peace
and eloquent hope

that i love
so dearly,

All my love
to you all,

always,

Maithri

singleton said...

Maithri....
I wanna right click your words and save them as a prayer....
a reminder...
a note tucked under my pillow...

I've spent days now caught in a
whirlwind,
a tilt~a~whirl
riding,
flying,
free....

I can't remember
Santa Claus
as a child,
or any sunrise, sunset,
being as BIG
as those words...
"Remission"....

And then another miracle happened...

Today,
fighting mad 8:00 traffic,
zooming in the fast lane,
muttering out loud
to the dashboard,
the windshield,
the sky
how much I dread....
sometimes even despise...
the very job I used to savor...
I had to slam on my brakes....
come to a screeching halt in the middle of five lanes of traffic
shadowed by a high rise concrete world....
to let two herons meander
across the yellow lines,
and in the five minutes
I sat there
with everyone beeping,
blasting
flipping me off...
in the five minutes I saw what they couldn't possibly see from behind me...
i remembered...

that the gift has been ours all along,
right in front of us,
under our noses...

We just can't forget to see....

Peace~love my friend
and thank you,
thank you,
for believing in just that!

Muah!

i beati said...

another kind of peace

singleton said...

ibeati...
the best!

As Kimbies always says,
Peace is a window.....

No said...

The sky is weeping with happiness today...great news....

singleton said...

No...
Isn't it the most, the very,very,very most best news!

Maithri said...

Wow!

Herons in the road..

My friend
I was stuck in traffic the other day

and instead of counting frustration,

I started counting
love stories
stretching out as far
as the eye could see

each one housed
in a separate automobile

all just waitin
to move forward

to turn the page,

Heres to you all

To the new day,
the new page,

With love,

Maithri

singleton said...

Oh,
if I had to wish a traffic jam on anyone,
it would be you....
A moments delay from the ratrace up and down the halls,
and a time to crawl through the window of
your imagination and dream!
Peace~love my friend
in
everything