Page 21 of Choosing My Happiness
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I walked into the hospital as the doctor was doing his rounds, and I was able to ask the questions I needed to.
I didn’t get the answers I wanted though. I only got the answers I suspected. Dad was marked as needing palliative care.
“What were you asking the doctor, Love?” Mom wondered as I walked back, pressing my fingers against my forehead.
“Medical stuff, Mom…such as what’s the next step?”
“Oh, it won’t be long they said, they’re just organising a bed in a new ward.”
Yeah, the palliative ward. I just nodded. I knew that telling her that when they said not long, they meant not long until he passes, not long until he’s home, was hopeless. But not long could mean anything from a day, to a couple of months.
I didn’t know what to do. I needed to talk to someone.
“Daisy?” Mom asked hesitantly.
I sighed. “Yes Mom.”
“You said yesterday you work in a hospital. Do you…work…”
“Yes Mom, I do work in a hospital.” I sighed, trying to move the conversation along. I’d always been frustrated at her timidness, and it was in full flight at the moment. She wanted something, and she was expecting to be told no.
“What do you want done?” I asked.
Mom mumbled something.
“I can’t hear you,” I told her.
“Can you see if you can get them to let your father out this weekend? To go to Blaze’s party.”
I closed my eyes in frustration. Fucking Blaze. Their world revolved around him. I was just an accessory.
“They keep saying he’s too sick, but all he needs is his oxygen tank and a wheelchair. He’ll be fine. I’ll look after him,” she whined.
“And that’s the fucking problem, you haven’t been doing that properly. You’ve been letting him get away with shit for years,” I muttered under my breath. I turned to her and said clearly, “What have the Doctors said he needs in addition to those things?”
Mom bristled in agitation. “They said he needs a nurse to watch over him. As if I’m not enough!” she spat.
I looked at the monitors.
“Mom, his oxygen levels are going down. Do you know what to do to fix that?”
“What?How do you know?”
I knew because I was watching him, but the numbers on the screen had dropped five percent and he was in a hospital under the best circumstances. I sighed…this was probably going to be his last outing and it actually would make everyone’s day. It would probably be a good idea and a great way for me to say goodbye.
“I’ll go and talk to the nurses,” I told her, feeling defeated as I turned to walk out again.
I did talk to the nurses and the doctors, took down all care instructions, reassured everyone that I could handle this, and then I called Bull to organize transport. There was no way that Dad and his gear would fit in my car or Mom’s. After explaining the situation, he told me that Midwife will help me and not to worry.
“Midwife will help you organize everything.” He hung up. I trusted him.
I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. I could trust him. I could trust Jim. I felt relief trickle in. For the second time in my life, I felt like I had support. I ignored the fact that it was provided by the same man. I walked back to let Mom know the good news.
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Chapter 14: Daisy
