Morning - Scapa Flow

I may have shared some of this before.  Davie was driving, a good while ago, and he had to apply the brakes quite hard.  He noticed an unexpected, blinding, pain in his back.  Back home in Orkney whatever he attempted he just couldn’t settle or get comfy.  Tests were required.  After tests in Kirkwall he was flown south immediately in an air ambulance.  On arrival in Aberdeen his kidneys only had 10% of functionality.  He had an aggressive bone cancer which had stripped out a lot of his calcium which the kidneys just couldn’t process.  His pancreas and spleen were also badly compromised.  All this at the height of Covid; he was allowed no visitors and was in Aberdeen for a long time.  He has lost five inches in height.  On return home he could still walk and drive.  Eventually that stopped.  His spine has crumbled further and now he can’t feel anything below waist level.  He’s been in the Kirkwall Hospital for four months.  I’m sorry if some of these medical explanations are not entirely up to BMA standards.  However I felt I had to write this; going to see him is quite an uplifting experience.  He talks so phlegmatically; I’ve never heard him complain once.  He has a small crumb of comfort as he is now robust enough to go back onto chemotherapy.  No doubt he has some very dark moments but when I’m with him he talks very lucidly and stoically about his illness.  Several hundred more of these inadequate words would not be able to begin to outline his demeanour and his capability.  He also still wants to know what’s going on.  He’s a gifted saxophonist.  I took him fresh scones and butter, tea, milk etc and we enjoyed another picnic.  I’ll go again next week.