Obviously David's surgery and recovery are not unique - many of our friends and family have been through similar ordeals and thankfully survived to continue life's purposes. The 98 year old Oregon mother of our artistic sister-in-law, Corinna, sent David this wonderful lyric:

Thanks for the memory
Of skimpy gowns to wear
To cover up your bare=,
Of tubes and things and needle stings
And hurts from heels to hair-
How lovely it was-

Thanks for the memory
Of pokes that do not please-
Like tracheotomies,
Of catheters when one incurs
Such gross indignities,
How lovely it was-

The orderlies always on call,
For that fast gurney ride down the hall,
You might be enjoying it all,
But it's not far to the O. R.
Thanks for the memory

You guess you've walked the walk,
From doctor's double talk,
You're cut and stabbed and sliced and jabbed
And left with wounds to calk-
We thank you so much !

Thanks for the memory
We're starting in apace
At sculpturing your face
A human or a Newman
Says the surgeon on your case
How lovely it was-

Thanks for the memory
Of all those pounds you've shed,
While, awkwardly, you've fed
From IV stands
And nurses hands
On your proactive bed
How lovely it was-

The ambulance sirens at night-
Rapid footsteps you hear out of sight,
Don't help any sufferer's plight,
Hold tough, old sock-
find wood to knock...

Thanks for the memory
Their praise of doctor's skill
From Brad and Bob and Bill
And better yet- do not forget
To sign a living will.
We thank you so much !

VP Campbell 3.27.09

As David eschews the stomach tube formula, his Hopkins Lab team sent in another artistic tribute for him to consume: An edible fruit arrangement which Lydia and I also are enjoying. The vagaries of Spring sunshine, rain, hail, rainbows, and budding trees areencouraging revitalization inside and outside of our Fallston home on this Sunday.