![]() I hesitate to say that my hospital stays were enjoyable (I hope I never have to go back). I was guided by the old saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” From the lemon life gave me (cancer), I made a tangy, hard lemonade that went down smooth. I figured if I’m going to be stuck in a hospital, I might as well try to enjoy the experience as much as possible. “Don’t quit your day job,” was my recurring advice. Some asked my advice on how to become a writer. On learning I was a writer, a few nurses purchased and read my novels and stopped by my room to talk enthusiastically about them. Staff would stop by just to listen to me regale them with stories and anecdotes.Īt Christmas, I went caroling with one of the techs up and down the halls, singing Christmas songs accompanied by his guitar. Friends came from far away to play chess with me. I walked a mile or two in the hospital hallways every day. I also painted a portrait of my 10-year-old black lab at the beach.Īs for poetry, I wrote enough poems to fill a full-length book aptly entitled “Running from the Reaper”(available soon to pre-order on Amazon). Later, at home, I affixed real Christmas lights along the edge of the camper in such a way that once plugged in, the colorful lights twinkled in the starry night. ![]() Staff walking past my room frequently did double takes, astonished to see a patient standing before an easel.ĭuring the holidays, I painted a vintage camper trailer in a snowstorm. I literally brought a full-size easel, palette, brushes and canvases with me during my stays. I spent my tedious days in between chemo bag swaps, vital checks and spinal infusions, writing poems about my cancer experience and painting. I met every person I encountered with a broad smile. Throughout my six-month ordeal with cancer - undergoing grueling weeklong hospitalizations for chemo and immunotherapy treatment - I was able to maintain my characteristic optimism. ![]() Almost every day someone would say to me, “I wish everyone here had your positive attitude.” During my hospitalizations, the doctors, nurses and staff constantly commented on how much they admired my positive attitude. A sage once said, “What you think, you become.” I’ve always found that to be true. ![]()
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