October 14, Thursday morning -- Reading Marguerite Yourcenar

In the Amubulatory Surgery Unit
prior to foot surgery, this is me, learning how to rule Rome, reading Memoirs of Hadrian, by Marguerite Yourcenar. The problem with reading a book is that you have to hold it with your hands your hands and arms have to stick out of the covers. Hospitals are cold, gowns have short sleeves, and the nurses kept telling me I had to be kept warm because cold patients are more susceptible to infection post-surgery than warm patients.

The nice thing about the book is valuing Hadrian's personality. Hadrian, even though he was ruling Rome, he was very low key about the whole thing. He loved power, but not drama and, reading about how he just took everything in stride logically -- giving a troublesome government official a stipend and sending him to the countryside -- relaxed me and helped me look at the surgery logically. Exile the unnecessary bunion and everything will be okay.Finally, I gave up on the book, let the nurses pile on more blankets and hook up a warm air nozzle into the pockets of the hospital gown (ahhhhh of contentment), succumbed to the anesthesia, went to sleep, and woke up with a cast on my right leg.

3 Comments:

bereweber said...

hi Sonya, i wish you a fast recovery, plenty of health and warmth!... your book choice sounds very interesting, i hope you can get back to read soon, hey! maybe the nurses let you bring a Snuggie in, i've never used one but looks perfect for reading in the winter

Recover soon!

bereweber said...

ah forgot the link
http://www.mysnuggiestore.com/c-98-original.aspx

Anonymous said...

Keep reading, Sonya. You'll be glad you did. John Boorman (Delivrance, Excalibur, etc.) is supposed to be making a movie adaptation of "Memoirs of Hadrian." That should be interesting!