Sachi dodged the bullet and did not need the feeding tube. He has, however, been advised to keep a close eye on his hydration status and go for IV fluids 2-3 times a week, even when we are in Lincoln. Once his swallowing becomes easier he will be able to maintain his fluid intake orally. This may take about three/four weeks. So we continue the regimen of daily radiation and once a week of chemo this last week of our stay here.
I have discovered that when dehydrated Sachi becomes crabby and easily annoyed. After IV fluids his demeaner dramatically changes to a loving, caring, good natured, easy to be with, contented husband. So I am sending a clarion call to all wives: when your hubby asks for a glass of water, give him the whole matka (Indian terracotta water container).
Thirty-four years ago, today, Sachi asked me to marry him (now that I think of it, I had just served him cold water from the surahi in my room). I guess the stars were lined just right for us that day. Few days later we wrote home and informed our families about our decision. The whirl wind that followed in our traditional families still creeps up in our conversations today. I will never forget the day Babi, just out of his teens, came to visit us. His wide eyed curiosity and easy acceptance instantly won me over. We got a day of getting to know each other when Sachi happened to be on call. During the day Babi lost a good hearted bet (I forget over what) and owed me an ice-cream treat. We decided to walk to the nearby shopping place for that. However, few minutes into our walk, Billoo, my mom's youngest brother and my self appointed guardian, spotted us and vroomed to a halt in front of us on his big motorbike. At six foot three inches tall, wearing leather boots, burgandy turban and upturned mustache he was a sight to behold. In an aggressive tone he asked me, "who is he"? I, just a year younger than him and winner of many childhood battles, would have waved him away with my hand like an annoyance, but looking at Babi standing petrified next to me I realised that Billoo would win this battle. So I grabbed Babi's hand and ran back into the hospital campus alerting the guard with, "don't let that maniac in!". I hate to think of what would have happened if Sachi had been with us. As it happened the two titans met properly at the wedding and grew to like each other indeed. Few days after Babi's visit Bou, Sachi's mother, sent me a beautiful red silk Oriya sari in reply to Sachi's letter to her about me. Things moved easily from that blessing on. Our families have been able to bridge the gap between two different religions, cultures and languages and form a bond that nourishes us till today. It was really a good day when I met Sachi.
---------------------------------------------
I wrote the above before going to bed late last night. Sachi wanted to add a few succinct lines of his own but not at that time. A whole night and a day is over and he is not feeling well. So I will finish with an update for now.
We spent the better part of the day in the Mayo clinic (just like yesterday). We met with Dr. Daniels (the resident) in the morning and he ordered more IV fluids. Sachi went in for his radiation then. At 11:30 we popped back in the hotel as Sachi wanted to have his two boiled eggs. He ate a little bit only and left the rest for later. We then went back to Mayo for some bloodwork. This showed Sachi's white blood cell count to be low (1.6). I am told that this is common during the treatment and they did not look worried. However, this prevented him from getting his last chemo. We have been told that this is nothing to worry about as five chemos are pretty adequate. The sixth one is put there as extra, in case one misses a week due to side effects. Sachi did get his one & a half of IV fluids. Usually he perks up after infusion but today this did not happen. He is quite weak and drowsy. We came home in a wheelchair. He has been mostly sleeping after that. I guess this is what they meant when they said that this treatment will be rougher than anything else you have gone through. Tomorrow Sachi has another appointment with Dr. Garces before the radiation. Then he has a scan (MRI) and an infusion scheduled. I am tired but cannot sleep. If you happen to read this today write me a few lines. I am not going to pick up the phone but it will be wonderful to read your message.
Ambi.
15 comments:
Hi Ambi.
I just read your posting and had to write to you- you appeared sad. You and Sachi are in my thoughts, everyday. I know Anup talks to Sachi often, so I don't bother you - but I do enquire. A lot of family and friends offer their spiritual insight, so I will not. Just hope and pray that you can muster enough courage for a couple more days - finish the treatment and come home so we can all share your emotions.
Happy Proposal Day. Good night.
Dear Main,
I just finished reading your blog posting and decided to write to let you know that we are all praying for both of you. We truly hope that things will take a turn for the better once you get back home to Lincoln.
You sounded a little worried and perhaps somewhat depressed. All things considered it would be very hard not to feel overwhelmed at times. You and Sati mamu have been such pillars of strength since the beginning of this ordeal that at times you make others forget what a difficult time this is for you.
Your reference to the PGI days brought back a few memories of my childhood. When we first met you Leema was 3 and I was 6 yrs old (wow!Leema was the same age then as Anamika is now).
I remember your visits to our home and all the excitement when your wedding was being discussed and planned. I was too young to understand all the 'issues' that the family kept referring to but I remember it being an exciting event :-). I also recall our visits to your parents' house in Rajouri Garden and all the wonderful food we would get there.
I hope you are still awake and are able to read this before you go to bed.
Just 2 more days and then you'll be back home and I am sure that'll do wonders to your morale.
You are always in our thoughts.
Love to you both.
Seema
The bridge of time formed by your words took me several decades back to my early years in Delhi. Before I met you, it was a plain routine of going to Chandigarh in a state of stark penury, relaxing there in royal style for a couple of days and returning to base with a bulging tummy and a stuffed wallet! But, after a long stretch of such monotony, arrived the day when Sanabhai told me about you and took me to your room for our initial introduction. In a daze of disbelief and a trance of wonder, I followed him to your place and without meeting your gaze bowed down to touch your feet. Enriched by your blessings, when I got up to see the face of my new sister, it was the sheer joy of my brother about to tie the knot and our family acquiring a new member, that filled my entire being with a sense of elation and happy anticipation. And the rest was history! Events unfolded and relationships developed, families united and new arrivals grew....Life became a beautiful story of love and understanding thereafter and as the years rolled by, even though a few stray moments of discord appeared which were probably created by Him to add spice to the variety of life, we witnessed the vicissitudes of existence with maturity and harmony. Its been a long time and all of us have gone through numerous upheavals while picking up the pieces and building our own peculiar but special identities in the arena of life. We have indeed come a long way but still have miles to go before we can call it a day and retire..... And you, Sanabhai, will have to pull yourself up, summon all your inexhaustible reserve of vitality and complete this journey through your present ailment with physical excellence and spiritual wisdom. Just before touching the finishing line every athlete experiences the fatigue of bursting lungs and breaking limbs, but that does not prevent him from pumping in that extra breath of vigor to lunge ahead and clinch the crown of success....
All the very best and God be with you always....
Pranams & Prayers
Babi
Dearest Ambi Main,
Pranam..Thanks for your beautiful and informative mail as always..I hope you have gone to sleep by now as you too need a lot of rest and all your energy for being able to attend to Sati Mamu and escort him for his treatment and appointments for MRI and with Dr.Garces for his final review.
We are glad that he could dodge the feeding tube and is managing with IV fluids and his daily intake of half boiled eggs and liquid supplements..just two more days and then this painful daily ordeal of chemo and radiation will be done and over for good..We hope and pray to God that these balance two days of radiation too go well and uneventfully and that the IV fluids help hydrate his body and perk him up as before..Main just hang in there a lil while longer and soon everything will be back to normal..we are all there with you if not in person but definitely in mind and spirit..so cheer up and look ahead to the good times and good life at Lincoln with Sati Mamu and your loving and wonderful kids.
Main..Your reference to your PGI days.. like Seema brought back a few happy and good memories of my childhood too though
I don't remember much of my Chandigarh visit as I was very young except the delicious taste of the Mutton Achar (pickle) that is only available in Chandigarh..I remember we liked it so much that we carried a big jar of it back with us to Delhi.
I however remember your visits to our home and how I would sit close to you and stare into your face and you always looked back at me lovingly and smilingly complimenting me for my big and expressive eyes..I remember talking in Hindi with you as I was just learning to speak in Hindi in school and would use all my big Hindi vocabulary with you and feel really elated that I could converse with you so well in Hindi..which I guess was a khicdi of Hindi-English-Oriya which only a few members of the family could decipher.. :)
I also recall our visits to your parents house in Rajouri Garden and all the delicious and wonderful food we would get there..I especially remember the sliced boiled eggs with pepper and onion masala on it which I used to love and only eat there but not touch eggs at home even if Mom made the same thing at home I would say this doesn't taste like Bedi Aunyt's boiled eggs.. :)
Hope Sati Mamu feels better this morning and his MRI, radiation and IV fluids infusion all go well and as planned.
Our thoughts and prayers are always with both of you.
Love always,
Leema & Achintya.
ojyDearest Sanabhai&Nuabou,
Nuabou,thanks a lot for your informative 2nd ~Khatta Mitha~note.It was nice to godown the memory lane of two wonderful,affectionate lovable humanbeing.We will never forget your latenight visit, to our place at Chanakyapuri,with Sanabhai,early June`74.That`s the first time we met you.You know we liked you instantly.
Sanabhai is lucky to have someone like you by his side when he is going through the most difficult time of his life bravely fighting an ailment with courage and determination.We pray with all our might that God be with you ALWAYS.
Sanabhai here is for you "Meditation for the Day"A.A.
"How do I get strength to be effective and to accept responsibility? By asking the Higher Power for the strength I need each day.It has been proved in countless lives that for every day I live,the necessary power shall be given to me.I must face each challenge that comes to me during the day,sure that God will give me the strength to face it.For every task that is given me,there is also given me all the power necesssary for the performance of that task.I do not need to hold back."...
We pray that you may accept every task as a challenge and WE KNOW THAT YOU CANNOT FAIL AS GOD IS WITH YOU'
With lots of love,goodwishes& regards to both of you.
Countdown is ending ONE TO GO.ALL THE VERY BEST TO YOU
Nandini& Swarup
Hello, Ambi. I so enjoyed reading of yours and Sachi's life. All that he and you have shared has made you strong for what you are going through now. Just a few more days and you will be home where you will both be surrounded by the people that care about you. Take what strenghth we can offer through our thoughts and prayers. I only wish there was more that we could do.
Take care.
Joani
Ambi,
We all knew from day 1 that this treatment’s side effects are rough. Sachi being a strong guy (mentally as well as physically) was in much better shape in first five weeks than the people going through this treatment normally are. I have talked to quite a few people who have gone through this and all of them were surprised when I told them Sachi came out for lunch and dinner with us after five weeks of treatment. Everyone tells me this treatment drains all the energy and person is really weak in 2nd or 3rd week, in shape Sachi is now. I am sure with ivy infusion and completion of treatment this week, Sachi will recover quickly.
Above all we have to keep faith in waheguru and I am sure waheguru is with us and Sachi will fully recover and back to work soon. Tell him not to go back on his promise to visit Jersey soon.
Hopefully you guys will have a better day today (Thursday). Let us know about the scan and radiation. Good thing is he does not need chemo any more, as chemo causes most of the problems he is having.
Avtar-Gurjeet
sat shri akal
didi nd sachi jijaji
i hav read d whole story whi is babi
mom sayng theek ho jayo jaldi nd ind aa jayo
whi.... who is babi
Until now, I have related my stories at Norwalk Hospital in the Internal Medicine Department for two primary reasons, 1) I know it takes Bododa back to the days of his yesteryears when he too was a young, wide-eyed student, ready to help the world, thinking that these experiences will take him back to his younger days and bring a quick smile on his face as he faces a tremendous uphill struggle, and 2) as my own struggle and revolt against the pain I am experiencing in seeing my formidable and unconquerable titan-uncle made vulnerable by cancer. In a way, I have refused to accept it and that may be my own folly.
I wanted to say that I have been praying from day 1 for you. You have always been in my prayers, but I have meditated from the first day that Jyoti Apa told me, in your name.
Bododa, your student still has a long way to go and needs your guidance very much. To receive your blessings when I receive my MD/PhD next June would be the highest honor, as you will take JeJeBaBa's place as the next doctor in the Mahapatra line to accept a wide-eyed student ready to help the world.
that was one of the cutest stories i've read. i have half a mind to cut/paste that and send it over as an inspiration to them...
anyhow, i just wanted to write you a few lines and let you know that i'm thinking about you guys a lot so if you get a chance update this blog :)
hang in there - treatment's over! now recovery's on the road :)
love and pranams,
vivek
Dear Ambi
We all are anxiously waiting for your presence in Licoln. All those good and bad days in the memory lane makes us perfect and strong. Your blog have taught all of us so much that it is difficult to express. Your emotional last nights blog comments were heared here in the Heartland and mother nature started pouring tears from last night and has not stopped yet. All our prayers for you both. See you soon. Please be strong at this critical juncture and taught us all how to face the reality of life with courage.
Alekha
Hi Ambi (Sachi, too)! Your post today is a precious and fun memory for you and such fun for those of us reading it for the first time. You both continue to be in prayer. We look forward to hearing that you are home safely and that Sachi is well on the way to recovery and growing stronger each day! The best to you both!
D'Arcy
Dear didi and jijaji,
This is to let you know that we are also there constantly with you in thoughts holding your hands. We realize that these last few days of the treatment are turning out to be the most trying days. But we know this shall also pass. Mummy-daddy and I very much wanted to talk to you on the phone but after reading the blog, we dicided to wait. Hope to talk to you both tomorrow.
With lots of love and hugs,
Bablee
dear sachi and ambi,
we are really happy on the progress of the treatment and the way you have accepted it sportively.we are sure that he will be back to his own style very soon.we pray god for speedy recovery.
sarada
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