A Day In The Life

at the beginning of last year, i wasn't feeling too well and so i went to see my doctor. she told me that there wasn't too much to worry about and gave me a shot to make me feel better or, at the very least, not feel any worse. but i got worse, quite a bit worse. so i called her office and her nurse told me to be patient, it would pass. instead i reached a point where i contemplated jumping out of my 8th floor office's window. so, i called and insisted on seeing the doctor. she apologised for the nurse, gave me some pills and another shot. but nothing seemed to be working. i was miserable, i was listless and i was confused. if i was feeling worse every day and the doctor said she could see nothing, what did that mean? i spoke with a friend of mine and she recommended that i see her doctor. this doctor, my friend said, was excellent. what did i have to lose? even though this doctor did not accept my insurance, i made the appointment. i was desperate.

one morning in early july, i went to see the new doctor. after writing a cheque for an obscene amount of money, i had my vitals checked and then sat down to wait for the doctor. she came in, sat down and asked me what was wrong.
and i burst into tears.
she had a box of tissues on her desk - i'm guessing that i am not the first to weep in that there room. and she was so patient and understanding. and she told me that, just from what i said, my doctor was probably wrong about my not having to worry about anything. we then went into an exam room where she poked and prodded me and said yes, houston, we have a problem. or something to that effect. but just to be sure i went over into another room for an ultrasound. then it was back to the doctor's office.

i needed surgery, she said. my symptoms would only get worse until this happened. "but you don't take my insurance," was the first thing i said. she said something about a payment plan but i wasn't buying it. i remembered how expensive having my wisdom teeth taken out, years ago, had been. i couldn't imagine how 3 days in hospital could be manageable without insurance. now i had two things to stress about - my health and not being able to pay for it. i left my new doctor's office, went back to work, packed my things and went straight home. i crawled into bed and slept.
it was all a bit much for me.
then my good friend, rifa, called me and asked me to go and watch a show at Prospect Park in brooklyn. bobby blue bland was performing and it was going to be great. i hadn't seen rifa in ages and so we made plans for friday evening. we got there to discover that bobby blue bland was ill and, instead, odetta, also referred to as "the voice of the civil rights movement", would perform. and what a performance. by the end of the evening, i was smiling and no longer wanted to curl up and sleep until it all went away. odetta was amazing and i was so glad i had decided to come out and watch her.

and, as they say, all's well that ends well. providence worked in my favour - my company changed to an insurance plan that was accepted by my new doctor - and three month's later i went under the knife.

but last wednesday, i heard the sad news that the incredible odetta had passed away. she had hoped to sing at barack obama's inauguration but, sadly, her heart did not hold out. i feel very honoured that she did hold on long enough to shine her powerful light on my life.