Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto
Waiting
In preparation for next Monday’s
knee operation, I ended up spending seven hours in this medical facility. I sat
down in the waiting area like a good patient, when an elderly fellow, up for
some body-part replacement, welcomed himself in the chair two over from me. He
started talking, or questioning, about maturing years.
“So, are these the golden years?”
I asked.
“I guess from the point of
wisdom, yes.”
“Physically though, I don’t have
the same agility as when young. Wouldn’t it be nice if both wisdom and strength
ran together as one?” I suggested.
“I believe it was Mark Twain who
said something about starting backwards if he could. In other words, start life
being smart and then reverse to youthhood. I believe Brad Pitt was in a movie
along that storyline.” The gentleman said his thoughtful bit. Then it was time
for me to meet the first of six interviews.
On my fifth or sixth jump in the
hospital, I was waiting for the x-ray person and, during that time, a young
person sat next to me. He was tall and was on crutches. We started talking. I
asked him, “Did sports do that to you?”
“Yeah!”
“Was it soccer?” I further inquired,
but he shook his head.
“Hockey!”
“Of course. I should have known.
You must be an all-around Canadian boy. You look it.” I kept on. “Are you from
Toronto?”
“No. Brampton,” he said.
“You’re kidding. The town of
Alexander Graham Bell, the telephone inventor. Also, the home of Wayne Gretzky,
the hockey phenomenon. You even look like him.”
“No relation, but I wish.”
One of the longer waits was in a
room where I was trying to be patient for the social worker’s arrival. To let
medical workers know that I’m still there I played Rachmaninoff, Concerto 2
from my phone while chanting japa over that.
May the Source be with you!
6 km
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