No Direction Home, Don’t look back, I’m not There.
What life can do to you. Over New Year’s Eve.
Something that happens to loads of young, tall, slim males: a pneumothorax. Nothing to worry about. Small incision. Routine. Create a vacuum. Inflate the lung. Let it heal. Success. Only that when you try to disconnect the vacuum, the lung collapses again. Very rare. So you are more careful, do a few tricks. Then try to disconnect the vacuum again. When the lung collapses again, you know you have to operate. Very rare, but nothing to worry about. Small keyhole operation. Routine. Success. Only that the heart beat goes up, blood pressure down and a rage of other signs tell you that something is going wrong. There is a leak and 1.5l of blood in the lung cavity, with the drainage clogged. Very rare, but nothing to worry about. Routine. Just after midnight: operation. Close the leaks. Flush out the lung. Nothing to worry about. Routine. Early morning. Success. Only that there is this SIRS. Very rare. Probability .051%. Only that when you get it, you get it 100%. On the edge. 10l of liquids. Tons of transfusions. Drugs with no end. A night with no sleep. Getting better. Someone older. Someone less fit. Someone like you and I would not have made it. Routine?
Next time, when I hear someone saying that there is nothing to worry about. That this is routine. Next time, when the nurse doesn’t mind that you stay the night. Next time when they bring in the fifth chair. Into an isolation unit. Where getting anything out again is next to impossible. Next time … I’ll expect the worst. Because next time, I won’t believe anything they’ll be telling me. Because if life decides that this 0.51% is you, a small percentage turns 100. In a split second.
I felt like No Direction Home. 2013: Don’t look back.
Today’s German Music Tip
Extrabreit, Hurra, hurra, die Schule brennt (1982). – The title is probably the best part of the song:)
What’s hot
2014
What’s cold
SIRS
The German word/phrase/verse of the day
Er ist über den Berg.
Twitter: @forPadraig
#caringforPadraig
web: http://www.caringforPadraig.org
Hospi-Tales 
Dear Reinhard and pat we are thinking of ye all at this hard time . He’s a tough guy . June
If I am exhausted just only imagining through your words all what has happened,.. how will you feel who are there? If anybody deserves some medals, these are you!!! So happy that Pádrige gets better!!!
There is only one person up for a medal, Ana, and we’ll give it to him whenever the right moment comes.
Reinhard
Sent from my iPhone
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Hello, Reinhard. The best text I ever got in my life was the one from Pat yesterday to say that Pádraig had pulled through this crisis. What a strong young man. Yes, I think you’re right in saying most of us wouldn’t have made it. But Pádraig is made of stern stuff. (I realise I’ve never actually used this particular expression in writing before, but it seems to fit the bill.) May this be the start of better things in 2014. Louise
Lots of new old words you are introducing, Louise, like ‘steadfastness’ and now ‘stern’. It’s a bit like wordsavers, and all do, indeed, fit the bill.
Reinhard
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It’s what I do, Reinhard. Words are life.
Pádraig is in my thoughts even more than usual today. All my New Year’s resolutions are bound up with him. I will shortly be on a Skype call to my very good friend Mary in Santa Barbara, California. People are praying for Pádraig there. With best wishes, Louise.