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Personal Narrative: The Variety House

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Kevin and I were preparing to go out of town. We did not know exactly how long we would be gone. The estimated time was a minimum of seven days in the hospital after the second surgery with four more days staying in a house beside the hospital. We expected to be gone a minimum of three weeks. During the days leading up to our departure, God kept working on my heart concerning the man who hit my car. Truly, I was not angry with him. I knew he did not mean to hurt me. It was an accident. But, the reality of the pain and suffering the accident had caused me was a daily reminder of the situation. God kept pressing my heart to “keep my word.” I had promised the man we would settle for the insurance policy limit and not come after him …show more content…
We drove to Pennsylvania and slept. The next day we entered the city going directly to the Variety House. The Variety House is a house beside the hospital where Chiari patients and one care giver can stay for free if you financially qualify. Rose and I had stayed there on our first visit to New York, so I was well familiar with the house. This was a blessing and gave Kevin a close place to stay while I had …show more content…
It was awful. The pathways in the hospital were made out of bricks. I was riding in a wheelchair and my body was in horrid pain. Every bump caused me significant pain throughout my entire body. By the time we got to the admitting office, I had to go to the bathroom and vomit from the pain. I was clearly the worst patient being admitted. It is interesting to sit around a waiting room and know you are the worst patient, by that I mean in the worst medical condition. I did it all year. I would go from doctor to doctor and know I was in worse pain than any other person in the room. I would even think to myself, “Why are some of you here?” I do not know why I thought about it except maybe because it gave me something to think about besides the reality I was facing. Anyhow, I was checked thoroughly by a doctor and given orders to return on Wednesday, December 14, 2005, for the first surgery. We left the hospital and I truly do not recall the rest of the day. I was in too much

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