The Themes They Are A-Changin' by Lynn Dove

It started during the night as a tightening, then a squeezing pain in my right calf.  I knew right away I had another blood clot, a DVT.  I hobbled down the stairs and broke the news to my husband that he'd better take me to the emergency room. 

He groaned, "Are you sure?"

"Quite sure," I winced while struggling to put on my shoes. 

Having a family history of DVT's, cancer, and diagnosed with another clotting disorder, the odds were in my favour to get blood clots at some time in my life, and sure enough, I have experienced deep vein thrombosis three times before this one.  As we drove in silence to the hospital, I could feel the anxiety well up in me.  Times had changed in our world.  We were still in the middle of a pandemic, and I wondered what new protocols might be in place to address my current situation and also to keep me safe from contracting the virus.  I wore a mask, as has been my new normal while I've been out and about the last several weeks, but I was given a new one the instant I walked into the emergency department.  The nurses were in full PPE (personal protective equipment), but their eyes seemed friendly enough.  Both my husband and I were told to sanitize our hands, and wait, keeping socially distant from anyone else in the waiting room.  At least the waiting part was very familiar to us.  It was a full day spent at the hospital, waiting on medical tests to confirm what I already knew, I had a DVT in my right leg.  I was sent home with my prescription for blood thinner pills and a new referral to the Thrombosis Clinic. 

All last year, I had documented my battle with endometrial cancer on my blog, Journey Thoughts.  I certainly had not intended at the start of 2019, that the theme of my writing for most of that year, would be focused on my personal journey with cancer, but life events have a way of determining what I write about.  When my kids were teenagers, I wrote about bullying, based on what they were experiencing at school.  When I was teaching, I wrote about my classroom experiences.  As a grandmother now, I write about my growing family.  My personal walk of faith with God has always been a part of my writing, interwoven throughout like a reoccurring colourful thread.  As life has its ebb and flow, or in my case giant U-turns, my writing gives account to all the highs and lows of daily living and walking with God through it all.

It is no wonder that the last several months, my writing has documented some of the challenges I've faced living through a global pandemic.  Three months ago I never used the terms, social distancing, cohort family, or global pandemic.  I never wore a mask, nor imagined a time when people would be forced to stand two metres apart, or unable to hug loved ones, or discover no toilet paper on grocery store shelves.  I thought I faced a "new normal" after my battle with cancer?  I'm still trying to figure out how to follow arrows in supermarkets to ensure we can pick up milk in a safe and orderly manner!

In the last two weeks, I have seen demonstrations held world-wide, to bring awareness to the systemic racism that pervades our society.  It has sensitized me on how I can write in such a way that shows my empathy without offending anyone.  It hasn't been easy.  I want to stay relevant in my writing, but admittedly, there are just some themes and topics I am uncomfortable in tackling.  So I pray instead, and hope my Saviour groans and intercedes on my behalf, hearing my heart when words fail me.

I've spent the past week with my leg elevated, waiting for the blood thinners to cut in.  Only today have I been able to sit at length in front of my computer to blog.  As I reflect on all the events that have occurred world wide, as well as process my own personal experiences over these past few years, I know my writing is in perpetual metamorphosis.  What I write about today, will not be what I write about a year from now,... maybe not even a week from now.  I'm okay with that.  I do pray I will be writing less and less about my ongoing medical issues, because it's a pain.  Literally.  All I can say with great certainty going forward is, "The Themes They are A-Changin'".

  
Lynn Dove is the award-winning author, of the YA “Wounded Trilogy”- a contemporary Christian fiction series with coming-of-age themes.  A wife, mom, grandmother, and free-lance writer with articles published in several magazines and anthologies including Chicken Soup for the Soul books, her blog, “Journey Thoughts” is a Canadian Christian Writing Award winner.  Readers may connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and at lynndove.com