Tears--and Cheers-- For Daddy

And how many tears I've shed. First sorrow, for fear of losing my beloved Daddy. Then more tears, tears of joy...he may survive....And now? Fear and uncertainty, as we discover exactly what kind of recovery is possible.... My wonderful Daddy--John Robert Allender-- is a huge source of emotional support for me.He supports my poetry, my acting, my sexual orientation, my love choices, my life choices. He is a retired Engineer with TECO Energy, and a retired National Guard Reservist. Loves guns, but no longer hunts(He used to hunt game, which we always used as our food). He now says "Aw, I'm too soft anymore, to shoot at any animal." Favorite films include anything with Clint Eastwood...or Steve Martin. He adopts stray, and feral cats, which live on his property. Loves reading about wolves, and Native American lore (he's one-eighth Cherokee). Favorite songs include "When Doves Cry" and "Purple Rain" by Prince; he saw the film five times. At the theater. He loves anything by (the late) Laura Branigan, too, especially "Self-Control". There's a litany of trivia and not-so-trivial (lovely!) things I could say about my Daddy, but I'll save those for another post. I'm hoping I'll have him right next to me, as I write about him, in future posts. If you haven't had yourself checked for Chronic Kidney Disease, do it now. CKD usually has NO symptoms, for ten-twenty years...and when you DO finally have symptoms manifest, it usually means Stage 5 (Kidney Disease is "staged")Kidney Disease, which means Dialysis, several times a week, for life. Contact the American Kidney Foundation for more information. We (my entire extended family of boundless love) are still trying to figure all this out, after the horrific fall and subsequent injuries suffered by my Daddy, on Monday, January 28th.The fall injured his muscles, as he lay alone for hours(he has insisted on living alone. sigh), unable to reach his cell-phone. My incredibly sweet Aunt Carolyn and kind Uncle Lee found him on the floor, lying motionless-- but still conscious--when he didn't meetup for their morning coffee. My Daddy has survived four heart attacks, three before the Pacemaker, and the one on January 17th, 2004, actually killed him, but EMT's were able to bring him, after three tries, "back". After that one, and a Pacemaker installation, he suffered one more, which led to a Pacemaker-Defibrillator combo being installed. Our own "Bionic Daddy". My Daddy was dubbed "Teflon Bob" long ago, by me, since no illness ever seems to "stick". We are all cheering him on, in this latest battle. This time, against Kidney Disease. We appreciate your warm thoughts, good energy, kind meditations, and yes--heartfelt prayers. We thank you for your goodness.We are Grateful. Peace, kids.