I went to the doctor’s today, mostly because if you have open heart surgery you are supposed to go to the doctor if you have the sniffles. The doctor was an elderly gentleman working part-time in the urgent care center in my town which handles colds and milder emergencies.

I went through all of the heart stuff, promised that I felt safe at home and was not the victim of domestic violence, and answered 100 questions about my heart, aches, sneezes and coughs. Life in America is getting complex, everyone is covering their behinds every minute of the day.

After much testing and prodding and deep breathing, the doctor said I had bronchitis, which would probably go away in a day or two. In case it doesn’t, he prescribed me some antibiotic medications, which I doubt very much I will take. I also got a tiny bottle of codeine – based cough medicine, which I enjoy.

I came home and mowed the lawn. The pollen set me off again, I think. Then I went to the Mansion with Red, perhaps the most healing thing I ever do. Watching Red and Maria on the porch, I was reminded of how much I have to live for, and how lucky I am.

My cough is still wicked but I got out to the new Round House Cafe with Ed and Carol Gulley. It is an amazing place, and despite some coughing fits, I feel I am getting better and stronger. We are taught in America to live with an abundance of caution,  and it is difficult not to be pulled into that whirlwind.

My diagnosis was life, and I love my life very much and wish to keep living it. So better to be cautious sometimes, I try to be kind to my refurbished heart. It has put up with enough from me.