Wrecking Ball

Dr. Reckingbahl is a punk-bitch, I say.

You say whatever you say.

I know, I say, I try not to say bitch. But I’m upset.

You understand and are kind to me about it.

Without a lot of prompting, I give you the scene, as I saw it:

“He’ll do much better at home,” Dr. Thad Reckingbahl said.

A very specific sort of tension emerges from my neural nets.

“I get that, Doctor,” I say. “But this is not a good or sustainable move for our family necessarily.”

“Patients do better with their families, not in assisted living facilities,” he says.

My profession ire surges then, and I say, “That is your personal value, Doctor, and it has no place in patient care.”

“It’s my professional opinion,” he says without showing any change in affect. My words clearly mean nothing to him, even when I’m critical.

“You’re a sports medicine doctor, correct?”

“That’s right. But I treat these kind of issues all the time.”

“Just checking,” I say. “Want to make sure I understand the scope of your practice.”

Thad nods, then says something to Ronnie, one of the nurses.

“Good day,” Thad says, then leaves.

“Be seeing you,” I say

Once he’s out of earshot, I ask Ronnie, “Whadhe say?”

She makes a sad face. “To up his morphine after you’ve left.”

Later, I’m on the bed, a folio splayed out next to me.

“I’ve had seven years to get this together, and I just … didn’t.”

You can see the label on the folio’s tab reads: THE STARS CALL US HOME.

You might point out in your wise and gentle way that perhaps I could not.

“Whaddyou mean?” I ask.

You could say that maybe I needed to live those years instead of writing the book.

“Yeah, but I was writing other stuff.”

Right, you go. That’s part of how you live your life. But that book … it wasn’t time.

Then I start to cry.

I’m crying because now I know, it is time.

Play procedures

• If you’ve got an orthopedic injury, Thad can treat it. I wouldn’t, but beggars can’t be choosers, I suppose.
• You can add The Stars Call Us Home to your inventory.
• Write about a time when you were disrespected by an entity that was meant to help you.