WAIT "verb: stay (put), remain, rest, stop,
halt, pause; linger, loiter, dally."
WAIT "noun: delay, holdup, interval, interlude, intermission, pause,break, stay, cessation, suspension, stoppage, halt, interruption, lull, respite, recess, moratorium, hiatus, gap, rest."
It's a funny word, wait. I've read the meaning of the word several times over now and while the words are accurate, they seem a little lacking in intensity. For us, the waiting is not passive. We have things to do, places to be, people to see. Our team (transplant nurses, doctors, social workers, etc.) tell us to "live your lives" while we wait. We are doing our best to do that, albeit with some restrictions.
We are limited in our travels, to a 2.5 hour radius of the Mayo Clinic. That's a pretty generous radius, actually. Last week, we drove down to Casa Grande (about 1 1/4 hour away) to see our son, Seth. From Casa Grande, to the Mayo, is about an hour. On the way home, we took the scenic route; a leisurely drive between The Sierra Estrella (mountain range) and The South Mountains. We were enjoying the drive very much when I realized that we probably wouldn't have good cell phone service on parts of this drive. Oops! We will try not to make that mistake again.
Lee & I are both pretty independent people, but we're learning to adapt to a "short leash" as Lee calls it. Short trips to the grocery or hardware store seem innocuous enough, but when you are on "The List," knowing exactly where the other person is at all times becomes a very big deal. Each of us carrying our cell phones at ALL times is mandatory. It sounds easy enough, but really ... think about it. Every minute of every day, we need to have our cell phones within reach. In church, we sit with our phones in our hands because we can't feel the vibration of the silent mode in our pockets. I often wonder what people think about seeing a mature woman sitting with cell phone in hand ALL. the. TIME. It's a good thing we can't read minds, eh? We try to stay within 15 minutes of each other all the time. If Lee wants to go to the grocery store, 8 miles away, I need to go with him or stay at home. If I want to go further away than 15 minutes, I make a back up plan for someone to pick up Lee and bring him to me or take him to the Mayo Clinic. As long as he's feeling well enough, he COULD drive himself to the Mayo Clinic, but I'd really rather he didn't ... and so, we make plans. We wait and we make plans. We know that "The Call" will probably come when we least expect it & are least prepared but we try.
Our teams. We have our Mayo Clinic transplant team and then we have our support team(s). Our support team is a small number of people who have volunteered to be our contact people in case the Mayo Clinic can't reach us immediately when we get an offer for a heart. The protocol is that our transplant coordinator/nurse will first call my cell phone, then Lee's. She will leave messages, then try us again, then begin calling our list of people nearby. Those people will either know where we are (and why we weren't answering our phones) or they will come to our house and come in (they have keys). What do you suppose the chances are of getting "The Call" and me being, say ... in the shower and not hearing my phone which I left on the counter (or forgot to bring into the bathroom with me) and Lee wandering outside to pick up the newspaper (while leaving his phone inside??) These are the things I think about. These are the things I pray about not thinking about.
Back to our support team. When we get The Call, I have a very short list (3, immediately then 5 more if time permits or as we're on the way) of people to call or text. Each of these people have a list of people they will notify for me: family, friends, and prayer chains. Knowing that people are praying for us daily now is a tremendous comfort and source of strength for us. Knowing that within minutes of getting The Call, we will have dozens (and then dozens of dozens) of people praying for us is humbling, exciting, powerful and so, SO calming. We know that we are covered in prayer and bathed in the Peace that passes understanding. (Philippians 4:7).
When the Mayo makes The Call, the first thing we will hear is, "We have a heart." Oh MY ... what will I say? How will I react? To be perfectly honest ... I don't know. I hope to be able to stay calm and focused on what we have to do. Heather, our transplant coordinator, tells us that in most cases, they will want us in our car and on the way within about 15 minutes. The drive to the Mayo takes a little more than an hour in GOOD traffic conditions. For me, having a plan is calming; being as prepared as possible is essential to calmness. I have a mini-clipboard that I now carry with me at all times. The clipboard contains 4 lists. On the top is my list of immediate action (pictured below.) The second list is things to gather if I'm home (my packed carry-on bag, backpack, Lee's shave kit, etc.) or to ask someone else to bring to the hospital for us later. This list also has things that need attention such as: take the garbage out, toss the bananas in the freezer, have Hilda clean perishables out of refrigerator, turn off lights, etc. The third list is my contact team and their lists of people to contact for me. The fourth is a reminder to email friends and family during the long hours ahead at the hospital.
Are we ready? Yes. I think so.
We will live our lives as best we can while we wait. In addition to everyday life: grocery shopping, bill paying, dental appointments, etc, we have many projects listed on our "to do" board. We've decided it would be best to keep our projects small and somewhat contained. It keeps us busy but not too tired out.
Waiting during cold, flu, and virus season seems particularly difficult. Do I really NEED to go to the grocery store? Will people be offended if we decline to shake hands in church? Are they even MORE offended when we whip out the hand sanitizer after shaking hands? We do our best to remain low key and yet vigilant about exposing ourselves to people who are or may be getting sick. If Lee gets any illness, he will be temporarily removed from the transplant list while he is ill and until he is cleared by a doctor.
So ... there you have it; our view of the waiting period. Now, back to waiting: cell phone batteries good? cell phone charger with me at all times? gas tank at least half full at all times? laundry done? lists at the ready? change of clothes in the car?
Wait patiently for the LORD; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD! Psalm 27:14
