My Journey with Farrah - Alana Stewart [27]
I tell her that if it were me, I’d damned sure bother her!
December 9, 2007
More delays. After examining her, Dr. Jacob said we should put the flight off until Tuesday or Wednesday. I won’t know until tomorrow morning if that’s possible. Farrah started to feel a little better toward the end of the day, so she came to dinner with Dr. Jacob, Mimmo, and me. But before dinner was over, she was starting to have a lot of pain again. I went back to the clinic so that I could stay with Farrah. I figured that I’d be able to change the flight in the morning and I would see Mimmo tomorrow night.
December 10, 2007
Farrah woke up early this morning feeling better and wanted to go. By the time they said we could change the flight, she was ready and the car was downstairs. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen her be ready to leave early! When she’s ready to go, she’s really ready to go. I didn’t think it was wise to travel against Dr. Jacob’s advice, but there wasn’t anything I could do to dissuade her at this point. I called Mimmo to say good-bye and he was really sad. I felt rather sad, too. I’d really thought we’d have one last night together.
We got to the airport and were met by the Lufthansa representative and escorted into the VIP lounge. Farrah went into the bathroom and was gone a long time. When I went in to see if she was all right, I found her doubled over and her face was ashen. She said the pain had started again.
“Are you sure we should go?” I asked, knowing full well what her answer would be. She assured me she would take her pain medication and she would be fine.
“Just get me on the plane and I’ll make it,” she said.
“You’re a very stubborn young lady,” I replied, half teasing, half serious.
The first part of the flight was fine. We ate and chatted and bought duty-free crap like blushers and nail polish. Then she fell asleep and I read for a while. After an hour or so, I went to the toilet and when I returned, she was lying there awake, crying softly.
“What’s the matter, honey? I just looked over and saw you crying.”
“It’s the pain…,” she answered through her tears.
“Do you want me to get the shot ready?” I asked. Thank God I’d had the foresight to ask Dr. Jacob to give me a pain shot for her just in case she needed it. She nodded and I prepared the shot and she gave it to herself in the abdomen. The pain began to subside soon after, and just before she fell asleep, I said with a little smile, “I don’t want to say I told you so, but I told you so!” She smiled back at me sheepishly, and we both laughed, my stubborn little friend and me.
This past month has been surreal: watching Farrah suffer through this agonizing experience and at the same time having this romantic affair with Mimmo. But Farrah is my priority, and any man who says he’s in love with me will have to understand that. This is a whole new me! I remember the time in Aspen years ago when another friend of mine was sick with the flu and I had just met this man I was very attracted to. She said that she felt abandoned by me because I was spending so much time with him. Looking back, I’m sorry to say that she was right. In the past, I always put the man first, and everything else took a backseat—including my own needs. Now I realize that men come and go, but a friendship between two women needs to be nourished and cherished for the gift that it is.
I look over at Farrah and she’s sleeping quietly and peacefully. There is no doubt in my mind that I have made the right decision.
January 1, 2008
I can’t believe we’re actually in 2008. Life feels like it’s moving too fast and there’s not enough of it left. This experience with Farrah has made me realize how fleeting life can be, how it can change in a heartbeat and never be the same. It’s so important to live in the moment and love in the moment and cherish the people you care about. I’ve never been particularly good about