HEARTS

Here we are in the month of February…much of winter’s harshest days are behind us now….Christmas decorations have been safely stored away for another year…my snowmen are still guarding their spots…soon to be crowded out by the arrival of Valentine’s Day which means cards…hearts shaped candies…chocolates…and lots of love floating in the air. It also means that February is “Heart Month”…something I have NEVER paid attention to in the past but has taken on considerable significance after last week. On January 31 my wonderful husband had a heart attack while sitting in the comfort of our home.

Suddenly, chest pain, sweating and nausea took on an entirely new meaning to the question “how are you feeling?” as he lay back on our bed to take inventory of how and what he WAS experiencing in the immediacy of the symptoms. The next few minutes were a blur as I made a phone call…..got us loaded in my car and sped off to the local hospital which is about 13 miles away. An EKG confirmed our fears and our late afternoon, which is typically spent preparing for a weekly meeting we oversee, changed to one of him getting an ambulance ride to a distant hospital and me arranging my own transportation to follow….AFTER making necessary calls to our children.

The days that followed his attack included three stents being placed in his arteries…gaining a team of doctors and nurses that quickly became our lifeline for four days….sleeping through interruptions from nurses and constant beeping noises of machines monitoring his vitals. I summed up my experience as though I was watching a movie of someone else’s life….surely this wasn’t happening to us. My non-smoker/not overweight/healthy-looking guy stumped the doctors with a need for emergency surgery that saved his heart from severe damage….leaving both of us stunned and grateful–mostly that latter!

Our few days in the hospital have many other wonderful stories that came from our unexpected experience–trauma?–and I’m quite certain they will pop up in my blog in the near future. For now, it’s safe to say we are very excited to be home. Five new medications now line the cabinet in our bathroom….food choices are slowly being reviewed….thank you notes are being written to good friends and pastors from church who dropped everything in their lives to be by our side when we needed friendship and support the most.

So, I’m reflecting on “Hearts”….I have never enjoyed the game of Hearts….I don’t get caught up in giving my guy a gift on Valentine’s Day–although that may change this year?–I will probably send our grandchildren a little card to make them smile and feel loved.  I missed wearing red on the first Friday in February which is supposed to raise awareness about heart disease….red is my favorite color; I think I’ll wear it more often now. But, I DID make a donation to the American Heart Association through our oldest granddaughter’s school fundraiser…good timing on their part I’d say….

Having an issue with one’s heart is never a good thing, but thankfully–when something serious does happen…there ARE wonderful teams of physicians who enter your life unexpectedly and become your February is Heart Month heroes….along with everyone else that you cherish and love very dearly.