What Happened ?

I wish I knew . As with all unforeseen circumstances , March 31st was like any other night . I had watched some television , had some tea and shortly after 10p.m. , I was in bed reading my latest book " The Glass Castle " . Little did I know the glass of my life would be shattered within a few short hours . I woke up at 3 am. to go to the bathroom . I remember looking at the time which is a habit of mine . I remember the tinkle . I remember standing at the sink to wash my hands . I remember looking at my reflection in the mirror . I remember the sudden feeling of extreme nausea .
I remember waking up slumped against the door jamb . I remember looking around the small bathroom wondering why I could not remember the small room . Nothing looked familiar to me . Where was I ? That was the moment I got a little scared . I remembered that NOT remembering was NOT a good thing . The pattern on the shower curtain was not one that I recognized . I did not even know I was in Montreal . It was all a blank . I looked at my shirt and saw the blood . It surprised me because I felt no pain . I wondered where I was hurt . I touched the back of my head and it came back bloody . I must have hit my head a bit . I grabbed a washcloth and held it to where I thought I was bleeding although I could not see anything myself . By that time , my thoughts were coming back to me as to where I was and why . I thought about returning to bed . Thank God I did not . My guardian angel whispered in my ear that head injuries and memory loss were not a good thing . Somehow it came back to me that N@ had given me some taxi numbers and the note was still in my purse . I called the first number , put my coat on over my pajamas , locked the door and went outside to the waiting cab. " Please take me to the nearest hospital .." which ended up being Montreal General . When I entered the hospital , I was not sure where to go .... somehow , I must have been in the emergency area . I fully expected to have to wait a while but luckily for me I was taken immediately into a room where my OHIP card and purse were taken . I explained that I had lost consciousness for some unknown reason . At this point , the series of events become a bit of a blur . Keep in mind that I could not see the slice out of my head at the back so I thought things were not too bad . I ended up in a hospital gown , strapped to a gurney , with a brace around my neck . As I was wheeled to the emergency ward , I recall thinking that I should call N@ but I was a little indisposed to make the call . I remember telling one of the orderlies that she would think it was an April Fools joke . The joke was on me . I had vials of blood taken and a tetanus shot on one side and a electrocardiogram on the other side . I remembered another time like this a few years ago when I saw my father laying on a board with a neck brace and at that moment , I knew I was being checked to see if I had a stroke . Damn . The doctor came by and stitched up the back of my head . I asked him how many stitches and his one word was "Lots . " Later , I found out I had a deep four inch gash at the back of my head . I felt like a female Frankenstein and was grateful I had not fallen on my face . ( Oh woman , thou name is vanity .) A nice nurse ( and they were all so very nice ) , explained that I was going to have a CAT scan to check for internal bleeding or any signs of a skull fracture . After that , I had to just rest and wait for the test results . I was experiencing some pain in the head by that time . No medication until my tests were cleared by the radiologist . Pain . I knew I had to wait and relax . I did my yoga breathing . My teacher would have been proud of me . I drifted off . Finally the nice doctor ( did I mention they were all so nice .. ) returned and said the wonderful words " All clear ... " .
Later on that night , I found out that they had missed detecting a small chip out off the top of my neck vertebrae .. a small price to pay for what could have been much worse . I took a cab back and called Natalie . She knew instinctively by my voice that something had happened . My daughter and Scottypants have been here with me and for me during the last week . To all of you who have called or emailed to see how I was , I thank you from that silent place deep within my heart . To the staff of Montreal General , your efficiency and kindness were a hallmark to your profession .
..and to my Guardian Angel who loved me enough to lead me through the shadows of the night
and gave me the good sense to seek medical attention .
Amen .