Writer’s pride perhaps, but I thought if I could write anything coherent today, I’d be either a fool or a credit to my profession, or both. After several days of chills, high fever and a sort of delirium – lots of scary stuff in the head – Maria spotted one of those rashes on me and we were off to the Hoosick Falls Family Health Center and in the touch and capable hands of Nurse Practitioner Karen Bruce. Lyme Disease, she said, the third one she’d diagnosed that morning. It was an interesting trip for me, I’ve been seeing a naturopath for the past five and when they asked me for all my records I didn’t really have any. But rigidity can be reckless and they were thoughtful sensitive and competent. It was fine. They e-mailed a prescription to my local pharmacy – the clerk at the counter looked at me and said, “hey, wait a minute, you’re somebody, aren’t you?” I said yes, I supposed I was.

Writing and photography is like breathing to me, very healing and I took poor Red – he has been by my side every minute of this – out into the new pasture, drawn to the beautiful sky. I got a couple of photos I like and I swear, as I stood there in that pasture, after three feverish and sweat-soaked days, it was healing, I could feel it. There are a lot worse things than Lyme Disease and it is amazing that in 15 years of tromping through woods and pastures I didn’t get it before. The clerk at the pharmacy said she had it for a year. (It’s kind of like talking about dogs. If you mention your dog, you will get a story about their dog, if you mention Lyme Disease, you will hear about everybody else’s Lyme Disease, and a few other things as well.) Nurse Karen things we got it early and I’m on antibiotics. You might get nauseous, she said. Can I write?, I asked. Sure she said.

Anyway, I am grateful to Maria for taking such wonderful care of me, for spotting the rash, for making me go into conventional medicine for the first time in five years. It could hardly have been a more loving anniversary. This morning, I gave her a framed photograph of her and Rocky out in the field, and on the way back from the doctors, she stopped at the Round House Cafe and got me lunch, and that food is healing as well.

This reminds me that marriage is about trusting and caring and communicating. She was doing all sorts of things this week she did not have to do and I can’t wait to feel good again so I can be as loving to her.