Archive Notes: This is an English translation and rewritten version of a blog post originally published in Japanese on October 2, 2019. [Japanese version]
Around 11:30 AM, I received an unexpected phone call. It was from the hospital.
This was the very first time they had called me directly, and to be completely honest, a wave of tension washed over me.
It turned out to be my mother’s attending physician, simply making a final confirmation of what we had discussed last Friday.
Since she had been consistently breathing on her own since Monday, I figured they would be taking her off the artificial ventilator soon. And just as expected, they did.
Today, I hopped on my bicycle around 12:30 PM and headed straight to the hospital. It took me a little under 20 minutes.
Since there isn’t an entrance on the east side of the hospital, getting to the bicycle parking lot requires a bit of a detour. But depending on the traffic lights, I can sometimes get there pretty quickly—it honestly feels about as fast as driving.
Thankfully, with Google Maps, I never have to worry about getting lost, even on roads I’ve never taken before!
Today was slightly cloudy, making it absolutely perfect weather for cycling. But up until yesterday, the heat was so intense it felt like the middle of summer!
Especially at night, when I turned off the AC, the humidity spiked to a shocking 70%. You rarely see humidity that high even on rainy days, so I was really surprised.
At the hospital, my mom was wearing an oxygen mask. While her breathing looked a little labored at times, that thick tube running from her mouth down to her lungs was finally gone. From an outsider’s perspective, she looked much more comfortable than before.
The doctors mentioned that the oxygen mask could also be removed eventually.
However, to prevent her tongue from falling back into her throat, they had inserted some sort of device through her nose. How does that even work? I have absolutely no idea. Either way, it looks really uncomfortable.
The only saving grace in all of this is that she isn’t conscious. That’s the only thing I can truly pray for right now.
Regardless, we’ve managed to clear the very first hurdle: getting her off the ventilator and back to breathing on her own.
When she first collapsed on the 21st, she was barely breathing at all. I suppose this progress means the bleeding in her brain is finally starting to subside.
Meanwhile, I’ve also been worried about my dad and have been taking care of his daily needs.
He eats every single bite of the meals I bring him. Compared to my mom—who used to take over an hour and barely make a dent in her food—he is doing incredibly well.
When my mom used to run the kitchen, there was always food left on the table that made you wonder, “Wait, what meal is this even from?”
My dad, on the other hand, is a bit of a neat freak who loves to keep things tidy, so now there is absolutely nothing left out on the table.
Tomorrow, my daughters are coming over to stay the night, so I’m planning to have a fun BBQ dinner at home with my dad.
I went ahead and stocked up on meat today to take advantage of the store’s triple reward points!
Is it just me who feels a bit of resistance dropping 8,600 yen (about $55 USD) on a single grocery run? But hey, I really want my dad to enjoy his favorite foods.
My 4-year-old granddaughter, Yuina, has this amazing power to make him laugh while playing Old Maid. Her energy is truly something special!
