March 27, 2006

• Michael y mis niñas aqui in Stephenville.  We just completed a wonderful phone call with Lorena and Roberto, her male nurse tonight.  She sounded great!!!  She only cried one time, and that was when we all told her how much we love her and pleaded with her to get well soon and to get back here with us.  Other than that crying episode, the rest of the conversation was punctuated by some wonderful laughter.

  
  

  Stephi is all excited about the prom coming up.  She had already gotten a dress, but Lorraine's boyfriend's (Jeremy's) mother, Audrey, gave Stephi a very expensive dress that Jeremy's sister had bought for her prom but had never worn.  In fact, the dress has never been worn.  As Stephi was commiserating to Lorena, "Mom, I have seen Jeremy's sister, and she is very well endowed, so I thought there would be no problem with the dress.  It fit great everywhere until I tried to zip the very top up.  I am so upset!"  I suggested to Lorena that I go get a bed sheet and bind Stephi down real tight and then stuff her in the dress.  Lorena laughed delightedly at that, and that was wonderful to hear.  Stephi does want to check with a seamstress to see if the dress might be altered so that she can wear it without having to alter herself...

  
  

  Lya had to tell Lorena all about me trying to kill myself up on a steep metal roof with my chainsaw this evening as I trimmed some limbs that were encroaching on my space.  I couldn't find my crepe soled shoes (that I actually wore in high school back in the 70's), and the shoes that I was wearing did not get very good traction on the sheet metal, so I would slip and slide down to the limbs I needed to cut as Lya would screech and holler at me just like Lorena used to do.

  
  

  I tied the chainsaw off on a limb each time so that if I did go off the roof, I wouldn't have to worry about the chainsaw chasing me down.  I had not used the saw for a couple of years, so it took awhile for it to really get to running well, which meant that I would get myself braced and balanced, start the saw, reach out with the saw in one hand and the limb in the other to try to make the cut -- only to have the saw die so that I got to try (very gingerly) to yank on the saw to get it to going once again.  (All the time, Lya was screeching and hollering...)

  
  

  Finally, I just took off my shoes and socks, which worked pretty well because when the pollen and dust on the sheet metal would coat the bottoms of my feet and they would get really slippery, I would do this contorted balance-on-one-foot-with-chainsaw-in-other-hand-as-other-foot-is-brought-up-and-wiped-on-other-pants-leg-while-praying-my-planted-foot-did-not-slip-and-dump-me-on-my-rear-and-off-the-roof.  It had to look very neo-Hillbilly -- and it would probably have gotten constant viewing had I been unfortunate enough for anyone to have gotten it on tape and posted it on the Web.  I survived, by the way, and all the heart-stopping action was worth it as Lorena laughed while Lya told her about it.  I would go up and JUMP off the roof if it would make Lorena laugh like that again!!!

  
  

  When we asked, by the way, Lorena and Roberto indicated that Papá is not doing well.  Lorena did not cry, so I am certain that she has come to terms with the knowledge that he is probably not going to be around that much longer.  I am so sorry for both of them because the love each other so dearly, but they cannot communicate and they cannot hold each other.  I hurt for them.

  
  

  However, Lorena's miracle continues.  To God be the glory!!!  Thank you all.  (I will try to let you know if there is the possibility of another performance of the Praying Stork Hillbilly Chainsaw Dance...)  [Lya said at one point, "Daddy, I thought you were supposed to be pretty smart..."  Ouch...  That one stung...]

  • 12:12 am
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