My Quantum of Solace

So, I am in the middle of cleaning my guest room/art room and I’ve picked up approximately three objects and therefore am in desperate need of a rest. I just figured while I’m recovering my strength and sipping my tea and rum (Hey, it’s good), that I would write about why I began cleaning in the first place.

My Sandee is coming to see me!

I mean, so is the woman who gave birth to me, (Hi Mom) but that’s not who I am writing about today. Although, I do want to give the parental unit a quick “shout out”  to say  “Thank You” from the bottom of my heart because she is driving herself and Sandee out to see me. So if I may take a second, Mom, thank you for coming to see me and thank you for bringing along one of the sweetest people on the planet!

Now, back to my dear little sister and best friend, Sandee. I met Miss Sandee, or PeeWee, as she was known then, when we were both residents at an in-patient rehabilitation center. I was in there because I’d had a massive stroke, and she was in there after being diagnosed with MS. The left side of my body was paralyzed and she couldn’t walk and could hardly stand on her own because her legs were so weak and hurt her so bad.


We were both painfully shy. I was bashful because I was only 26 years old when I had the CVA (CerebroVascular Accident, aka Stroke), I was in what felt like a nursing home with people aged 70 and up. I was, by several decades, the youngest person in there, yet I couldn’t cut my own food, stand, or walk. I couldn’t remember anything for more than about five seconds and I told the same stories over and over. I was wounded and too ashamed at my newfound circumstances to function. All of that swirled together and resulted in my self- imposed isolation. I hid away in my room unless forced to come out for therapy. I had all my meals in my room on my bed and had no intention of doing anything else. I would sit and draw and eat all alone everyday. I was miserable and I saw no end in sight. Little did I know someone was looking out for me.

One day, during lunch, one of my favorite nurses walked into my room, sat on the edge of my bed and watched me draw for a little while. She smiled and said I was very good. She followed that much appreciated compliment by letting me know about another patient and artist on the same floor. A lady who was a bit older than me was there, and she was  taking meals alone as well.. This “other lady” would stay by herself and draw as well. The nurse said this  person was sweet and the nurse was confident that I’d really like her. There wasn’t much else to do at the time, so I figured I’d humor the well-meaning nurse, go say “hi”, and continue on with my existence, for whatever that was worth. Well, as they say, the rest is is history. This is when I met my much beloved PeeWee and we have been sisters ever since.

When I entered her room, I saw a petite little doll of a woman. She was so delicate and dainty especially compared to my larger and taller physique. She had long braid after braid expertly done on her elf- sized head that hung in masses down her back. She had kind, light eyes that squinted up into little slits when she laughed. Her slender mouth opened into a frank smile that was equal parts genuine and welcoming. She was older than me, but you’d never know to see her. Her dark complexion was as smooth as any 20 year old you’d want to put her against. Her hands were small and graceful and her calves were covered in leg warmers, which I would come to know as her signature look. These leg warmers served the dual purpose of looking fashionably cute, and they also kept her little legs warm. But best of all, this woman was charming, inviting, and preciously, vulnerably open. I at once wanted to hang out with her, protect her, and make her laugh just one more time.

And God, have we laughed! Before leaving rehab, she managed to fall into and get stuck in a toilet because her little tush was too small for the seat. We still laugh about that to this day. Each time we bring it up, we laugh until it makes our ribs hurt, especially when she mimics her position in that porcelain bowl: legs up in the air, ass stuck in the cold water and feet and hands waving around, haahaa!! We laugh over the time my abdominal muscles gave out and I ended up helplessly sliding down the glass sneeze shield at Subway. We laugh at our triumphs as well as our dismal failures and funny mistakes. We can commiserate over walking into a room and having no idea why we are even there or even who’s house we are in. We get a kick out of falling over thin air, choking on nothing and coughing so hard we pee. Some of this is age related and some of it is medical. But all of it is US - and OUR  unique brand of humor. For years we have kept each other going with our giggle-fest phone calls.

So, yeah, Sandee coming is kinda a big deal to me. I can’t wait to sit up all night with her talking about nothing and everything all at once. We can drink a little, laugh a lot, and gossip and then gab the night away. I’m so grateful for this woman. She means the world to me. Love you, Sis!