By Steve Stricker 

Columnist 

Seems this is an unexpected “PS” to my Letter to God from last week…. 

Ecclesiastes Chapter 3 – There is time for everything – you know it. “A time to give birth, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant. A time to kill, and a time to heal, a time to tear down, and a …” 

I pray that this is a time of healing for me as I’m sort of beat up. Since, forever, in good shape, no doctor, feeling “bullet proof,” engaged to a Lass from Scotland in 2009, God showed me that he was in control and in 2011 took her, my right dominant eye, both hips, and two procedures to remove my gall blader! 

From there until now fighting loss of vision in my remaining left eye, on June 22, 2017 regular three-month checkup with GP, feeling great, pulse/oxygen thingy on finger, pulse 39 – EKG, 20 minutes later met current hero Dr. Mrk Campbell who gifted me with a pacemaker. 

Although feeling great, experiencing some shortness of breath, at my regular six-month appointment with Dr. Mark at the Stern Clinic to check pacemaker which was great on Wednesday, September 18 told him – and bam!  He immediately made an appointment right then for an echocardiogram on Monday, October 14. 

That Monday, after 8:30am Mass, feeling great, some of that old “I’m bullet proof” feeling came back as Christy moved her Echo wand over my heart and stomach.  Of course she couldn’t disclose her findings, but my appointment for follow-up with Dr. Mark wasn’t until October 30 and she had Dr. Mark’s nurse, Autumn call me. 

The much-anticipated call from Autumn came at 3:35pm, that afternoon.  Kind of cocky, “knowing” she would say, “All Clear,” instead began saying words that I had her repeat and interpret.  “Your Echo revealed a 25% EF.” What?! Your heat is only pumping at 25% Ejection Fraction of what your body needs.  That is, you are in Level four Heart Failure., the worse.  Bloody Hell! I felt great then and now, and she made an appointment for me to meet with Dr. Campbell at 1:45pm the next day. 

Meanwhile discussing this with my Dr. son Stephen, specialty Oncology, who taught at Samford in Birmingham, AL and had his own practice and patients – “Dad, I have had many 25%EF patients, and you don’t look like any of them!” 

Dr. Mark, unflappable as always, said that that this was not at all unusual, would perform a nuclear stress test and then replace my needed to be replaced pacemaker anyway, with the new Improved model and that would put me right back in the long-life program. 

Whew.  This stuff takes every ounce of my daily prayers to God, faith, and then some.  Main thing, like day of my pacemaker, I feel great!   So, from now till “nuclear” stress test will walk and, and like my born-in challenging self, will be in shape, ready for new pacemaker, and move on to my 190th birthday! 

Steve is an Oxford resident and received his Ph.D. in Counseling from Ole Miss.