Rest, Relax; Odd Conversations...(and an update)

Learn to enjoy life more.  Relax, remembering that I am God with you.  I crafted you with enormous capacity to know Me and enjoy My presence...When you walk through a day with childlike delight, savoring every blessing, you proclaim your trust in Me, your ever-present Shepherd. The more you focus on My Presence with you, the more fully you can enjoy life. (Jesus Calling by Sarah Young, p.236)

Got the "Grace is an ocean" analogy going on!

    Today I needed to actually practice rest and relax.  I had more chicken soup (that's what platelets look like) and was able to get unhooked long enough to wash, change clothes, and wash my hair. (Yep, it's still there, but it's coming out...) After washing my hair, I experienced some pretty severe chills (a lovely side effect). When they started, the though Relax came to mind and breath prayers of Jehovah Shalom, God of Peace came to mind.  God brought the exact friend I needed with me to be the calming influence in the not-so-calm state of activity. As I focused on breath prayers and relaxing my tense muscles, I was aware of her whispered prayers of peace and wholeness (I should say here that the hospital staff was outstanding in their care...I didn't want you to think they weren't present.). I was able to relax and remember God is with me.  I'm savoring the blessings of friends God puts in our path who travel this journey...for a time or who join us at several points in time.  I proclaim my trust in God, Ever-Present, Ever-Faithful, Unchangeable!
   Odd Conversations...(If you get grossed out easily, you might want to skip to the Update.) So lately I've been having some weird conversations with God and my nurses.  One of the conversations involves poop. (Yes, this definitely gets "cool aunt" points!) Because one of the side effects of chemo can be diarrhea, I decided to pray about what I call "chemo poop." I let God know that I really didn't want to experience that particular side effect, so if I could "soft, not runny" would be good.  So this is one prayer I'm so glad has been answered. (Okay, if you're thinking, "She really shouldn't have posted that," remember, you could have stopped reading.) I'm not thinking this is sacrilegious because I know God cares for every aspect of my life.  I do, however, think sometimes when I pray for specific things, like poop, He probably chuckles a little. One of my nurses and I had an interesting conversation about boogers today. (More "cool aunt" points!) We were discussing the dryness of the hospital air, because I had requested a nasal spray.  She said she had noticed on the days she works her boogers are bigger than the days she doesn't.  I thought that was interesting because just this morning I was thinking that my boogers hadn't been this big since I was like five years old. When she left my room I thought, "Did I just have a serious discussion about boogers?" Wow...

Update:
    Another good day. Comical incident: A doc came in while I was having breakfast and  introduced himself.  I asked where Dr. B was.  He said that he was the doc that admitted me last night.  I said, "Really? Because I've been here two weeks." The look on his face said "mortified." He apologized for being in the wrong room.  I told him not to worry about it and to have a good day.  Great visit with dear friend who was calm in a not so calm situation; So more platelets today and it looks like I will be well cared for at least another week. They keep taking blood and putting it back in. Learning a lot about medical equipment. Enjoyed visits from friends, calls, texts, emails, and cards. Sad about not being at our back to school kick off, but was told about it. Relax seemed to be the word of the day...resting and relaxing in God's ever-faithful presence.