The great outdoors
I think I expected my world to open back up once I arrived home from London. And to a certain extent, I suppose it has. But my world now has a very high wall around it, and although there is a gate, the price of admission is steep. To enter my sphere of attention, you must either (a) contribute to my family's well-being or (b) care about my dad. So work and Teagan's school, for example, get in. Politics and the vast majority of current events do not. I don't think it's always going to be this way, but that's how it is right now.
A really lovely side effect of this, though, is the hope it gives me for the human race. A lot of my job involves writing about the terrible things people do to themselves or each other--whether accidentally or on purpose--and I found it was really getting me down. But now, because of a situation that is admittedly far from ideal, I have daily if not hourly reminders of humanity's incredible capacity for kindness, generosity, empathy, love, and hope. You're good people, Team Eric. Thank you for showing me the absolute best the human race has to offer.
All is status quo in Bed 7 of the ICU of Guy's Hospital. Kidneys are getting a little better every day, so the dialysis machine remains idle. Dad got a little more rest last night, but daydreams, Woolfe-like, of getting out of the ICU and into a room of his own. He'll get a little more walking in, and someone even mentioned something about going outside. Outside! The man hasn't even SEEN sky for almost three weeks, let alone sat underneath it. So today, Team Eric, please send sky. Fresh air. The Great Outdoors. And as always, thank you.
UPDATE from an email just received from Mom: "O happy day! Dad/Eric actually got to go outside! It is a gorgeous day here--sunshine and perfect temperature. His nurse and one of the PR people bundled him up in a wheel chair, and we all went for a short stroll outdoors. We showed him The Shard and even wheeled him across almost to that King's College quad where Carl, Allison, Barb, Rick, and I ate lunch one day. Dad loved it!" (The photo is of a reclaimed British phone box that stands in the quad Mom mentioned.)
