lot.”
An uncomfortable silence followed. To
break it, Penny followed up with, “So, how long have you worked here?”
Alyssa laughed again. “Too long.” Looking
at her watch she announced, “I better get going. You know Reins. She has that
uncanny radar when she thinks someone is goofing off.”
Penny felt her stomach drop: she felt as
if she was being ditched. “Okay, well, see you around. Nice talking to you.”
Waves and smiles all round, and they
parted company. Suddenly Alyssa called out, “Let’s make a plan to have coffee
this week.”
A rush of surprise and pleasure coursed
through her all at once. “Anytime this week works fine with me.”
Halfway down the corridor, Alyssa yelled
out, “Thursday at break, say one-thirty?”
Everyone passing in the hallway must have
heard Alyssa’s invitation, and they turned to look at Penny. She felt as if she
were back in high school, and the sense of pride felt like the warmth of the
sun’s light after a storm. Yeah, that’s right, the popular girl likes me so you
should too, she thought. She knew her over-the-top happy reaction was juvenile
but she didn’t care. Invitations felt really good. She yelled back louder than
necessary, “Sure, see you then Alyssa.”
“Make friends on your own time Marins,”
Reins remarked as she breezed past. “Mrs Somers in room 106 needs you to assist
her into the shower.”
“I’m on it,” she responded cheerfully.
She wondered if she glimpsed the beginnings of a smile on nurse Reins face, but
she couldn’t be sure.
She halted midway into room 106. Her
patient was sitting in bed, looking down the front of her nightgown at her
breasts. She looked up to find Penny backing out of the room to give her some
privacy. Mrs Somers snorted and waved her in.
“Come on in, there’s nothing to be
frightened of, I was just peering down at my boobs and I have to say, I am
amazed at how they’re just about to touch my belly button.” She looked up with
a surprised expression. “How the hell did this happen? When did my once
beautiful breasts go down the damn tubes?”
Tearing off the bed covers, Mrs Somers
slowly maneuvered her legs off the side of the bed. The pain was etched clearly
on her face as she attempted to complete this task. “I’m not complaining, but
everything on my body is falling apart so quickly that I haven’t had time to
get used to it all. And God, I’m only fifty-nine. Let’s face it honey, having
cancer speeds up the ageing process, but thank God the doctors are giving me a
good prognosis.”
Walking purposely toward her patient,
Penny said with conviction, “We’re our own worst enemy, and believe me no-one
knows that better than me. We always see our own flaws inside and out, but it
seems to me that no-one else notices what we fixate on.” Penny almost added
‘except my mother’ but restrained herself.
She helped Mrs Somers up off the bed, and
led her to the bathroom. Penny could see the agony she experienced with every
step. She held her as gently as she could, well aware that the cancer had
knocked the hell out of her.
Helping Mrs Somers off with her
nightgown, she spotted the look of shame before her patient quickly looked down
at the tile floor. “I’m a mess,” she said quietly.
Penny blurted out, “What I was expecting
with the way you carried on, you should see me without my support hose and lift
up bra. I think you look great.”
“Mm. I’ve had four children, all C
sections.”
“Four kids? Get out. You have got to be
kidding me.”
“They were well worth every stretch mark,
sagging skin,” Mrs Somers announced proudly. “And they are so worth the fight
to get well again. They can’t lose me, not yet. I still have more work ahead of
me.”
Steering Mrs Somers into the warm shower,
Penny thought that indeed Mrs Somers did look wonderful, despite her cancer,
despite carrying four babies to term, and most of all despite the cuts and
bruises one gets along the way on
An uncomfortable silence followed. To
break it, Penny followed up with, “So, how long have you worked here?”
Alyssa laughed again. “Too long.” Looking
at her watch she announced, “I better get going. You know Reins. She has that
uncanny radar when she thinks someone is goofing off.”
Penny felt her stomach drop: she felt as
if she was being ditched. “Okay, well, see you around. Nice talking to you.”
Waves and smiles all round, and they
parted company. Suddenly Alyssa called out, “Let’s make a plan to have coffee
this week.”
A rush of surprise and pleasure coursed
through her all at once. “Anytime this week works fine with me.”
Halfway down the corridor, Alyssa yelled
out, “Thursday at break, say one-thirty?”
Everyone passing in the hallway must have
heard Alyssa’s invitation, and they turned to look at Penny. She felt as if she
were back in high school, and the sense of pride felt like the warmth of the
sun’s light after a storm. Yeah, that’s right, the popular girl likes me so you
should too, she thought. She knew her over-the-top happy reaction was juvenile
but she didn’t care. Invitations felt really good. She yelled back louder than
necessary, “Sure, see you then Alyssa.”
“Make friends on your own time Marins,”
Reins remarked as she breezed past. “Mrs Somers in room 106 needs you to assist
her into the shower.”
“I’m on it,” she responded cheerfully.
She wondered if she glimpsed the beginnings of a smile on nurse Reins face, but
she couldn’t be sure.
She halted midway into room 106. Her
patient was sitting in bed, looking down the front of her nightgown at her
breasts. She looked up to find Penny backing out of the room to give her some
privacy. Mrs Somers snorted and waved her in.
“Come on in, there’s nothing to be
frightened of, I was just peering down at my boobs and I have to say, I am
amazed at how they’re just about to touch my belly button.” She looked up with
a surprised expression. “How the hell did this happen? When did my once
beautiful breasts go down the damn tubes?”
Tearing off the bed covers, Mrs Somers
slowly maneuvered her legs off the side of the bed. The pain was etched clearly
on her face as she attempted to complete this task. “I’m not complaining, but
everything on my body is falling apart so quickly that I haven’t had time to
get used to it all. And God, I’m only fifty-nine. Let’s face it honey, having
cancer speeds up the ageing process, but thank God the doctors are giving me a
good prognosis.”
Walking purposely toward her patient,
Penny said with conviction, “We’re our own worst enemy, and believe me no-one
knows that better than me. We always see our own flaws inside and out, but it
seems to me that no-one else notices what we fixate on.” Penny almost added
‘except my mother’ but restrained herself.
She helped Mrs Somers up off the bed, and
led her to the bathroom. Penny could see the agony she experienced with every
step. She held her as gently as she could, well aware that the cancer had
knocked the hell out of her.
Helping Mrs Somers off with her
nightgown, she spotted the look of shame before her patient quickly looked down
at the tile floor. “I’m a mess,” she said quietly.
Penny blurted out, “What I was expecting
with the way you carried on, you should see me without my support hose and lift
up bra. I think you look great.”
“Mm. I’ve had four children, all C
sections.”
“Four kids? Get out. You have got to be
kidding me.”
“They were well worth every stretch mark,
sagging skin,” Mrs Somers announced proudly. “And they are so worth the fight
to get well again. They can’t lose me, not yet. I still have more work ahead of
me.”
Steering Mrs Somers into the warm shower,
Penny thought that indeed Mrs Somers did look wonderful, despite her cancer,
despite carrying four babies to term, and most of all despite the cuts and
bruises one gets along the way on
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