News: from Lorna

Jul 29, 2009, JULY 2009

July 31st, two days from now, will mark two years since my mastectomy. What a two years its been - I've had the most difficult trials physically: first of all the car crash in May of '07, the cancer diagnosis, the operation, chemo. All the complications from the chemo which found me in the emergency ward four times (with four ten-day stays in hospital), blood clots, pulmonary complications, heart failure, cracked rib and finally the insertion of the defibrillator.

I went away to Florida for a week's sun and while I was gone my rather creepy and totally unethical cardiologist at the time (62 yrs old) started sleeping with the young woman (24 yrs old) who had moved in with me when I came out of hospital the last time and was helping me with my day-to-day living. She actually, I believe, saved my life and it was a terrible blow to have her gone. The cardiologist was not someone I chose, he just was the one on the ward when I arrived at the hospital and I continued to be checked by him after I was released. So now I was without help and without my cardiologist. I then fell down stairs three times - once really injuring my lower spine and another time yanking my right arm as I tried to save myself by grabbing the handrail.

I slowly began to regain my health, in September last year I started riding again and felt much, much better, then on a beautiful sunny day in October I fell on Madison Avenue and broke my right knee which necessitated another ten-day stay in the hospital and my moving into a friend's apartment since I couldn't get up my two flights of stairs. It also kept me off a horse until early May. Then at the end of May my defibrillator fired which was a very weird experience and hopefully that was the last health horror although at the time of this writing I had to forgo my riding lesson today since I have a huge sore on my backside from an ill-fitting saddle last week which rubbed a blister. It's rather painful.

I was running this saga past my meditation teacher and said that I felt I was either dealing with loads of evil past karma or else I was in training to be a messiah.

My trip to Middleburg, VA was more fabulous than I could ever have imagined. I got to ride a friend's retired race horse, George, who had been given a tranquilizer, but nevertheless ran so, so fast when we got out into the open - he must have thought he was at the track - I've never been that fast before - it was quite thrilling but difficult to get him to whoa-whoa! Then Michele took me to the tack shop and I was able to purchase absolutely everything for the hunt - from tip to toe: hair nets and a glorious pair of hand-made boots which when I called the bootmaker, I discovered had been made in 1985, were worn-in but will certainly last my life time. I got the boot pulls, the jacket for the hunt and the jacket for breakfast afterwards, the canary vest with brass buttons, the shirts and stock with stock pin. The proper breeches, stirrups and gloves.

I had the best time, now all I need is an opportunity to wear it all - I'm sure that will come.

Life rolls on - I had a few peculiar turns where I felt my surroundings were fading away from me, which was the precursor to my defibrillator firing but my now cardiologist cut back on some of the water elimination meds and I feel so very much better and haven't had one of those turns since.

Off to Hot Springs, Arkansas this weekend to speak at a really large conference. Arkansas is a beautiful state and I'm so looking forward to that southern hospitality.

Next month I am going away on retreat to IMS in Barre, Massachusetts and where I'll be on the 11th when I'll mark my being granted 33 years of sobriety.

 

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Lorna Kelly
P.O. Box 33
New York, NY 10028
lornakelly@lornakelly.com