Last Wednesday I was admitted to the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York to investigate the root of my foot infections. To date, I have had three surgeries on my left foot all stemming from a fall, tripping over my then black lab puppy, Lucy. It’s hard to believe so much destruction could occur from such a cute little face.

Lucy at eight weeks

This has been my third hospitalization in the last six months dealing with foot wounds. The first time, I was released on Thanksgiving, and this time I celebrated Easter in New York. All three trips to the hospital have been under emergency circumstances, but I was still able to pack sufficiently from home. And “by sufficiently” I mean I have my notebooks, favorite pens, my Nook, my laptop, my daily devotional, my make-up and comfort clothes. If I had to rely on my husband to pack those items, I’d be sunk. Let’s face it, as readers and writers we can bear any situation or delay in our lives as long as we have those few lifelines.

59th Street Bridge

When I arrived to the hospital on Wednesday night, I was pleasantly surprised to be placed in a private, corner room, six floors up on the East River with clear views of the 59th Street Bridge, also know as the Ed Koch Queensborough Bridge. Although it doesn’t have the history and beauty of the Brooklyn Bridge or the GW, it evokes an industrial message – something raw and vulnerable that appeals to me.

Erector Set analogy

The view from Manhattan over to Long Island City, Queens lacks the drama of a city skyline, yet serves as a reminder of the practicality of city life. People live and work here, but due to the high costs of living in Manhattan, most commute from the outlying boroughs. After some brief research, I learned that, from an engineering standpoint, it is a cantilever bridge, which means there is one long continuous beam from one support to the other. A close-up view of the bridge, reminds me of a gigantic Erector set.

When it was originally constructed in the early 1900’s, the bridge was built for cars, trains and a trolley car system. Although the plans were clearly developed, there were many setbacks in getting started on this engineering masterpiece. Through the years, the rails and trolly car lanes were replaced by car lanes and a pedestrian walkway. Although in form it was and still is an engineering wonder, now it functions more efficiently as a means of transportation.

As I researched a bit more, I also discovered that Simon and Garfunkel immortalized the bridge in their 59th Street Bridge song aka “Feelin Groovy.” Art Garfunkel wrote the lyrics when he returned to New York from England, and was subsequently dealing with a new level of fame. During his initiation into fame and a new fast paced life, he was willing himself to “slow down, you move too fast, you got to make the morning last….”

That could be the message for me as well. Right now, I’ve reached

Hardware – my own personal erector set

day seven on my hospital stay, which is quickly turning into day eight. On Friday, I had a fourth surgery; this time to remove hardware, which was cultured for bacteria. Unfortunately it has yielded a positive reading, which means I will need a PICC line inserted for at-home infusion of antibiotics. Although my surgeries have forced me to “slow down,” and I’ve tried to rest productively through all three set-backs, this time around, I’ll have to Wait and See  believing that, “he’s not finished with me yet…”

Participating in this weekly Slice of Life challenge, has helped to develop my writing muscles. I am always amazed at what “turns up” on the page. Thank you to the Two Writing Teachers for providing this opportunity to write within such a supportive community.