The Descent

This was going to take longer than I anticipated. I decided to call Mona.

Mona is a very unique creature. She’s been working with us for over nine years, but above that she’s also a good friend. I figured I better give her the head’s up. Barbara was in the city seeing clients all day and Mona was manning the office by herself.

“Hey. It’s me.” I said. “I’m going in to see the gyn. But they also want me to get an ultrasound on the breast. So this will take longer than I thought.”
“An ultrasound?” She sounded alarmed.
“They just want to take a closer look.” I tried to be reassuring.
“Today?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll call you when I’m done.”

My gynecologist is one of my favorite people but seeing her is one of my least favorite activities. She’s Filipino and has a wonderful sense of humor. She is an accomplished surgeon, gynecological oncologist and obstetrician. Her office is wallpapered with photos of all the babies she has delivered. Above all, she’s not an alarmist.

“Hmm.” She said as she palpated the offending breast.
“Hmm?”
“You’re going for an ultrasound today?”
“They’re squeezing me in” (there it was again. I was well down the road of bad breast puns. There would be no turning back.)
“Okay. Get dressed. Come see me in my office.”
She hadn’t said what I wanted to hear. Oh. It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it, or any of those things. She hadn’t even laughed it off. My heart was beginning to do a Gregory Hines.

Once in her office she said. “I want you to see the surgeon. Today.”
“Surgeon...? I was getting a bad feeling about this.
“I’ll walk over and make sure he can see you.”
“Today...?” My mind was moving in slow motion. An involuntary attempt to slow things down.
“Have the ultrasound and then go directly to the surgeon’s office. I’ll make sure he sees you.”
“Oh... Okay... Thanks.”

Everything was moving too fast. I couldn’t keep up. Breathe, I told myself. Deep breaths. C’mon. Don’t panic. They’re just being careful. I realized I had to call Mona again.
“They want me to see the surgeon.”
“What?” Mona sounded a bit panicked. “Today?”
“Yes. They’re just being careful. I guess this will take longer than I expected.”
“Today?” She repeated again, trying to absorb it.
“I’ll call you when I’m done.”

To be continued...

©2006 Annelise Pichardo