Distanced

We had a Huge scare this week. Seems my Dad decided to go to the Hospital with what we thought might be a Heart Attack!
Thank God it wasn’t. But Terribly enough, his Blood Pressure went through the Roof!

It’s funny how miscommunication and not being “there” really affect perception, mood, and of course, Reality. DUH! You might say, but give it some serious thought and some of us may not fully grasp how much distance influences our Relationships.

My Dad, My Mom, My Sisters, My Baby Bro, My Nieces, Cousins, Aunts, Uncles…All in Southern California. Me, in Toronto. Of course, you have read by now that my Beautiful Pumpkin, My Papa Bear and My Handsome Angel Baby are in So. Cal too. What on Earth then am I doing so far away?! Damned Canuck that I fell in Love with, that’s what I’m doing so far away!

But I digress, or will begin too if I don’t focus 😉

My Coma-Sis calls me and I tell her I’ll call her right back. And I say that because just a second after I answer, my Mom is on the other line…

I answer.

“Mija, Pedro está en el hospital…”

And from there, I began to panic! “What Happened? Is he Okay? Why is Dad in the Hospital?”
From the bit she was able to tell me before the Doctor walked in, she told me that he was complaining of Chest Pain and that he asked to be taken to the Hospital!  He was admitted and that they were going to run some more tests that morning.  The Doctor was there, she had to go.

You see, my Dad doesn’t go to the Doctor unless he’s REALLY, REALLY sick, much less the Hospital, therefore, if HE is asking to be taken…Not Good!

Now, what would you all gather from this?  Heart Attack, right?  Well, I called my Coma-Sis right after I hung up with my Mom.  She told me that the previous night the Doctor, after having run some tests, said that his BP was high.  That his heart seemed fine.  That they were going to run some stress tests. 

I felt a bit more comfortable after speaking with my Coma-Sis, but still Impotent.  I was too far away to be there, yet again!  AND, I found out about this the Day After! 

What if it HAD been a Heart Attack?  Would they have called me right away?  Would I have had time, WILL I have time if anything ever occurs, God Forbid!  How will I ever know anything? 

The only thing that gave me a sense of Peace, of Control was doing research on High Blood Pressure.  Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, Prevention and Living with it. 

After gathering as much as I could take, I emailed My Dad, Mom, and Siblings ALL that I found.  I stressed Diet and Eliminating Alcohol, and Low Salt Consumption.  These are the areas where my Dad needs to work on.  You see, he doesn’t eat vegetables, because he is neither a cow or a rabbit.  🙄  He also Loves his Bloody Red Meat. Not at all my cup of tea, yuck!  And he ingests way too much salt!  And the cherry on top, he enjoys his Ice Cold Beer.  Not a good combination for HBP.  What saved him, THIS TIME, is that he is VERY Active.  He likes to go for runs or cycle.  But it’s not enough!  Not if he’s going to be around for Us and his Grandkids…

I worry.  I worry about their diet (HIS and my Mom’s), if they’re getting enough physical activity.  If they’re okay. 

But my Reality is that I am far away.  I can’t do anything.  I can only hope and pray.  My Reality is that I can only go by phone calls, emails, texts, or no news.  That’s it.  And ALL of these are flawed. 

Look at the Conversation with my Mom.  I thought My Dad was in Grave Danger!  I mean he IS!  But for a minute, I thought I would have to hop on a Plane in the next couple of hours and Pray that I had enough time…It was horrible!  It still is!  What if…

I don’t mean just my Dad either, ANYONE!  Any of these People that I Love and Value and am TOO Far away from…

Yes, I know it’s a reality of life.  I realize that, but how helpless, how distant, how useless one feels…Of what value can one be? 

All I can do is Pray for each and every single one of them…AND keep on living as the vast majority of us do…As If we are Immortal, Invincible, and as if those are things that only happen to OTHER People…

“Time goes by so fast, people go in and out of your life. You must never miss the opportunity to tell these people how much they mean to you.”