Thursday, May 22, 2008

Designated listener

Unfortunately, I was the designated listener for a good friend yesterday. I sat through the doctor's appointment with her and took notes while she more or less heard the words that would change the course of the rest of her life.

The doctor did a wonderful job with a most difficult task. She started the conversation with "I am so sorry that you have to come see me today." She spent nearly an hour and a half with us, explaining and also doing a fair amount of listening herself.

Afterwards, we went out to lunch. Shortly after ordering, the waiter returned to the table. "I'm afraid I have some bad news," he said. "We're out of the foie gras."

She and I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Bad news indeed!

7 comments:

kenju said...

She was lucky to have you, and foie gras is too fatty for anyone to eat!

Ruth said...

It seems she has an excellent doctor and an excellent friend. I wish her the best.

JeanMac said...

It's all relative, isn't it? So sorry for your friend.

Dan Walter said...

Nice blog Doc. I'd be very interested in your opinion about my blog. It's the story of what happened to my wife - an RN during her hospital stay. It is a work in progress and I would appreciate your comments. I realize it is a bit strident at present, but I have had some physicians say good things... Please let me know.
http://adventuresincardiology.wordpress.com/

Thanks

Mauigirl said...

So sorry your friend is going through this...and you are a great friend for going with her and taking notes.

rlbates said...

What a good friend you are!

Wendy said...

I would have burst out laughing! And the waiter would have thought we were crazy. Well - who cares?
Did you order strawberry smoothies instead? LOL.
Seriously, she was lucky to have you with her. I hope things turn around for her.