Happy 47th Anniversary to my Beloved Friends, Beth and Luther Stanton

Luther was a classmate,

Fifty years ago,

Beth, an underclassman,

Found him a worthy beau.

An Army brat outsider,

I never fit in well,

At Columbus High in Georgia,

I was not a reigning belle.

Luther, then "most handsome,"

( Well, he had a lot more hair ),

Befriended me regardless,

And it just went on from there!

I left home out of high school,

Returning now and then,

And, when I did, I'd always find,

That duo I'd call friend.

Once, they moved to Houston,

Which worked out fine for me,

 I'd see them when I'd spend time there,

To visit my friend, Sandy.

They traveled west occasionally,

And we'd try to rendezvous,

Can't miss an opportunity,

With friends so very true.

Beth and Luther see the world,

And I'm a traveler, too,

Sad we've never gone together,

It's on my bucket list to do!

Beth and Luther were my rocks,

My last months with my mom,

While I coped with her illness,

They were like a soothing balm.

Once a Stanton loves you,

You're embraced by all the clan,

So I acquired extended family,

When this relationship began.

From gatherings to eat at Country's,

To a fattening catfish meal, 

To one of Beth's five star breakfasts,

Which has the most appeal!

I haven't any shred of doubt,

This marriage was meant to be,

The Divine Wedding Planner,

For all time, did so decree!

Forty seven years of love,

Seen in their happy smiles,

I send you my best wishes,

Far across the miles!

And, no, my good friend, Luther,

No money comes from me,

You'll get your share, Beth, will, too,

When I win the lottery!

Carmen Henesy

copyright Carmen Henesy July 1, 2014

Watery Wednesday & Wordless Wednesday - The Chattahoochee River - Columbus, Georgia

Watery Wednesday & Wordless Wednesday - The Chattahoochee River - Columbus, Georgia

I am participating in Watery Wednesday and Wordless Wednesday -

check out both sites for great photography!

Lucy - Camera Critters and Pet Pride, August 21, 2010

Lucy - Camera Critters and Pet Pride, August 21, 2010 

Luther Stanton, my friend of fifty years,and his wife, Beth, had an adored yellow lab,

Molly, who died this past year while they were up at their vacation home in Helen,

Georgia.  To say that they were devestated is putting it mildly.  When they returned

home to Columbus, they buried Molly in their yard, near the lake on their property,

with Luther vowing he didn't want to ever have another dog.  Beth immediately went

out to the shelters and the pound looking for another dog to love.  Lucy was not in the

best of shape and was to be euthanised the following day when Jen, their daughter,

spotted her and called Beth.  Needless to say, Lucy captured their hearts.  She is the

sweetest dog, very friendly and she instantly became part of the family.  She does

think she is a lap dog, however, and she doesn't understand that she does not fit in

most laps!!

I am participating in Camera Critters  and Pet Pride - join in the fun!

Home Alone

I am sitting at my  mother's house tonight, alone.  It seems too quiet here, without her relaxing across from me in her recliner, dozing, while I type.  In the eighteen years I have been visiting her at this Columbus, Georgia apartment, I have never spent a night in it without her present.  Even the past two days, when she hasn't been aware who I am, I could look across at her and remember times past.  Now I just feel so bereft.


Today, she slept until I woke her at 11AM.  She has stopped reading the morning paper or having coffee, two habits that have been part of her life as long as I have.  It took me an entire two hours to get her up and moving to make her appointment at Dr. Fussell's office, her board certified gerontologist.  She was so short of breath, even the slightest movement exhausted her and required that she stop and rest.  Getting her out the door and into my friend's truck left us both gasping and the situation repeated itself once we got to the doctor's office.  The nurse then attempted to do a geriatric assessment, asking numerous questions.  My mother did not know who she was, where she was, what state she was in, the year, and, of course, she still had no idea who had been harrassing her for the last couple of hours.  The nurse mercifully gave up on the rest of the questions.


Once the medical assessment got under way, we began to get some answers.  Her pulse was 173 and the two nurses were unable to get a blood pressure reading.  Her oxygen was extremely low and she was short of breath and very dehydrated.  After she was seen by Dr. Fussell, he said she had to be admitted to the hospital for atrial fibrillation and congestive heart failure.  He felt she had probaby had a stroke, secondary to the atrial fibrillation.  According to the American Heart Association, "Atrial fibrillation is a disorder found in about 2.2 million Americans. During atrial fibrillation, the heart's two small upper chambers (the atria) quiver instead of beating effectively. Blood isn't pumped completely out of them, so it may pool and clot. If a piece of a blood clot in the atria leaves the heart and becomes lodged in an artery in the brain, a stroke results. About 15 percent of strokes occur in people with atrial fibrillation.  The likelihood of developing atrial fibrillation increases with age. Three to five percent of people over 65 have atrial fibrillation.  Several approaches are used to treat and prevent abnormal beating:  Medications are used to slow down rapid heart rate associated with AF. These treatments may include drugs such as digoxin, beta blockers (atenolol, metoprolol, propranolol), amiodarone, disopyramide, calcium antagonists (verapamil, diltiazam), sotalol, flecainide, procainamide, quinidine, propafenone, etc. Drugs are also used to help reduce stroke risk in people with AF. Anticoagulant and antiplatelet medications thin the blood and make it less prone to clotting. Warfarin is the anticoagulant now used for this purpose, and aspirin is the antiplatelet drug most often used. Long-term use of warfarin in patients with AF and other stroke risk factors can reduce stroke by 68 percent."

My mom is now at St. Francis Hospital in Columbus, Georgia, the same place where I worked as a candy striper fifty years ago.  I also spent three months there as a young medical-surgical R. N. when my infant son and I stayed at my mom's while my husband was at the Air Force's Squadron Officer's School in Montgomery, Alabama eighty miles from Columbus.  Of course, nothing is the same as it was then, other than their stellar reputation which has only grown.  Today, it is also Columbus' first and only Primary Stroke Care Center, accredited by the Joint Commission ( which really means something to us nurse types who always sweated through those inspections at our hospitals! ).  As soon as my mother got into bed, she seemed to relax and barely moved when her excellent nurse started her I.V.  I feel certain that, right now, my mother could not be in better hands.  I hope she is having a good night's sleep and that her heart, with the help of pharmaceuticals, will return to a normal sinus rhythm, and do the job it is supposed to do.  Perhaps, then, at least, she will be more aware of her surroundings and will be able to recognize the people who love her.

Georgia

I went out again with my friends last night....will post those pitures later.  I am really enjoying getting to spend so much time with them.  Tonight, we're going out for Greek food!  I am also accomplishing a few things for my mother as well.  In two weeks, thanks to Dale Wommack and St. Mark's Church here in Columbus, my mother will get a hot meal daily at lunch, from Monday to Friday, complete with a beverage and dessert - she loves butttermilk so I am sure that will be her choice.  Also, she finally agreed to see her doctor and I am taking her, first thing Monday morning to Dr. Fussell's office!  That is the biggest relief of all to me.  She has been off her medication for hypertension for over a year.  At the very least, she needs blood work and I am sure he will do that!

The best news of all is that my brother and his wife sold their home in Florida and will move back to Atlanta, into their new home there, on Thursday.  They will be only about a hundred miles from my mother which will take some of the burden off of me, 2500 miles away.  They always lived in Atlanta until my brother decided he wanted to be near the beach about eight years ago, much to my sister's dismay ( she's always felt like a sister to me, not just a sister-in-law ).  Like a good wife, she humored him and, finally, he agreed to move back home.

I would never move back to Georgia myself, not even to Atlanta which is quite a nice city.  It's too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter but I still feel a lot of love for my home state.  I penned this poem not long ago and I wanted to put it out there, especially for my Georgia friends who are now reading my blog and for those of you who are not familiar with this state.

Georgia

I think of you with fondness,
This state of my birth,
With your Chattahoochee River,
And deep red clay earth.

In the spring, you're abloom,
With dogwoods and azalea,
And you claim that famous onion,
That comes from Vidalia!

Long known as the Peach State,
You're known for peanuts, too,
And before the boll weevil,
Huge fields of cotton grew!

You are a part of our history,
One of the original thirteen states,
You can boast the sea and mountains,
In the list of Georgia's greats.

There is Southern hospitality,
And giants of industry, too,
Amd a mix of U. S. military,
Thrown into the brew.

Georgia has so much to offer,
And no matter where I roam,
I'm proud to say my roots are there,
You will always feel like home.

Carmen Henesy

Copyright©2008 Carmen Henesy. All Rights Reserved.