Wed. 5/22 Michael's Home (and not a second to soon)

It's a testament to the flexibility of the City of Hope transplant team that I am writing this from the comfort of my mountain home (in Cedarpines Park).  Many people have worked diligently to ensure the environment to which I was returning was clean and safe (especially relative to pests and rodents, which are pretty much a staple of mountain living). 

There is still lots of activity to put the finishing touches on my den remodel which makes holding leadership and other meetings at my home office much easier. But I appreciate the fact that the COH team seems bent on carrying out the wisdom of their oft-stated question, 'What the point of curing the body if we destroy the soul?'  My discharge day was truly a day to acknowledge the sophistication of the COH team--they are all amazing in their passion, their training (even the student nurses) and their obvious commitment to excellence and service.

Only having been home a couple of days, I'm already enjoying the benefits of the work being done by so many friends and family over the past few weeks. It's easy to appreciate not being connected to an I.V. pole, sleeping quietly through long periods of time, and all the comforts of home (which one appreciates significantly due to their weeks-long absence.)

I will be followed by the medical team at least weekly for the time being so I'm hopeful I will be enjoying more and more unfettered engagement with the public as the next few weeks unfold.

The actual transplant went about as well as it could have.  I was released at the absolutely lowest number of days possible and the blood counts are returning to normal at the pace expected.  More next Wednesday as I have the first follow-up appointment.

I need to recast my expectations as to what and what kind of work I can accomplish in the next few weeks.  My stamina is less than I'm used to.  For example, I'm counting my time on the eliptical trainer in single digits these days. 

I'm able to participate in most of our regular and leadership meetings but am looking forward to when I'll be able to have more engagement in day-to-day activities (not that the team particularly needs my support). The MCT leadership team continues to carry out day-to-day tasks with excellence and I continue to hear stories of kiddos' lives being changed by interventions carried out through out team of direct service clinicians, family specialists, and parent partner, which really is what this is all about.

What I'm Learning

Mindfulness (the ability to be in the present with 100% focus) matters.  

I'm seeing more and more that staying in the present is the right answer for so many problems and opportunities, though technology and various 'bright and shiny objects' provides plentiful potential distractions.

Swing at the ball you're pitched.

Experiences like this make it easy to focus on what one can't do.  The reality is these times present unique opportunities for doing that which, in more normal times, often gets squeezed out by the urgent.  Tasks at which I can excel during this unique time include: strategic planning, blog writing, reading potential grants, reading growth-producing work from sources like the Harvard Business Review and various supportive materials to our student services (e.g. Gallup's new student-focused strengths materials, and the innovative "Seeking Safety" curriculum which is focused on overcoming the negative impact of trauma).