Today has begun like every other day.  The household is awake.  The puppy is walked.  My sweetheart has left for his office.  My granddaughter is off to school.  That leaves only my daughter, Emily — Favorite Child, as she calls herself — the grand-dog, and me.  As soon as my oatmeal has landed in my belly, this ordinary morning will become the beginning of a day that will be anything but routine.

Ivy has left for school with a note requesting permission for her to ride home on a different school bus to spend the afternoon with a friend.  My sweetheart is on call in case any holes develop in the plan.  He has a take-out order for Emily’s dinner ready to phone in.  I have a bag packed with books and music to occupy me while I sit in a familiar waiting room.

Today Emily will have her fifth knee surgery.  It really doesn’t matter how often these times roll around; the fifth time is just as stressful as the first.  Adding insult to injury is the late start.  Instead of drawing one of the early-morning slots for the O.R., she is not scheduled to arrive until 1:15PM, which means her procedure won’t begin until about 3:ooPM.  Our usual afternoon routine, crucial to the smooth flow in our household, will be shattered.  Dinner will be random, Grandma will not be available for homework support, and we have no firm notion of when our day will end.

On Tuesday, Em and I spent the morning wrapping up the loose ends that she needed to care for before her post-surgery recovery.  We made our yearly batch of salsa, filled her grocery list of comfort foods, and ran a couple of errands.  When we realized it was lunchtime, we decided to duck into the China Wok Buffet and have a quick bite to eat.  At the end of our meal, the server brought our check along with two fortune cookies.  I’m always amused by the way my fortunes seem to be written just for me.  When they are particularly relevant, I add them to a small collection of slips in my desk drawer.  The one that came to me on Tuesday will definitely be added to the collection.  It read:

Before we leave today for the hospital, before the hubbub begins and the check-ins with the rest of the family start to land, I will remember to still my mind and find the peace that lies at the center of my being.  I will remember that I have the power to make it all work.

Have a peaceful day!