ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
My Precious
My month in the eyes of Gollum
--
I’ve wanted to write again on Medium for a while. I hope everyone had a great holiday season. I’m posting a quick update so everyone knows I’m still alive. I’ve been mentally, physically, and emotionally tired, and it has been hard to find the energy to write or the words to describe my past month. The only word that comes to mind is “exhausted.”
I’ve had several spinal and joint procedures, but none have relieved my pain. I have an arthrogram Monday and several upcoming procedures, so I remain hopeful and anticipate a full recovery. Sometimes things take time.
All of my providers know I’m very cautious with narcotics because I’ve seen many patients accidentally become addicted to medication. The day finally arrived when the pain was so intense that I told the doctor I would take anything to stop it, even an opioid. Fortunately, I only required a single dose of pain medication. Now I have to limit my physical activity until the problem is solved.
Laughter is the best medicine
I believe laughter is the best medicine, so I’ve made some AI images to depict my life over the past month. I hope it’s entertaining. It was fun creating the images.
Anyone who has read the books or seen The Hobbit or the Lord of the Rings movies might recognize the character “Gollum.” He’s known for his most famous phrase, “My precious.” He constantly had a motive of attaining the ring. I feel much like Gollum lately because I have had a one-track mind. But unlike Gollum, the thing precious to me right now isn’t a ring. What I hold precious right now and what consumes my mental energy is my physical healing and restoration of my prior level of functioning.
I don’t think it serves anyone to pretend I’m a lovely flower shining sunshine and sprinkling rainbows when I’m in pain. I think it’s better for everyone if I’m just honest. Maybe it can help someone who’s in pain feel less alone.
If I could personify my pain, it would look like Gollum. When I first began the series of doctor appointments, I was polite and extra friendly. Now I want results, and I’ve done away with the pleasantries. I’m tired of waiting over an hour to see the doctor when I have a scheduled appointment. I’m tired of procedures that don’t work.
It would be a strong exaggeration to say I act like Gollum, but the pain does affect my mood. I’m still friendly, and I understand that the field of medicine is much like mechanics. I don’t blame doctors for not being omnipotent. But the pain causes me to become irritable and impatient at times. It also makes it difficult to perform everyday tasks.
For fun, I exaggerated the effect of the pain on my mood and portrayed myself as Gollum participating in some of my activities. I think it’s an excellent way to explain the events of this past month, the good and the bad. It’s also an excellent way to make light of a bad situation and improve it. Humor can be exceptionally mentally and emotionally energizing.
My December in the Eyes of Gollum
This is probably what I looked like each morning after a painful sleepless night.
Some mornings I had to rest after performing tasks as simple as brushing my teeth.
It would’ve been nice to sit on the countertop while I cooked, but that wasn’t an option. 😉
I often felt like crawling into the laundry basket to nap, but that wasn’t an option, either. 😉
I managed to put up a tree with my neighbor’s help and decorate it, so I was excited about that!
I decorated the entire house with fresh flowers for the holidays! It was so uplifting to bring nature indoors.
I bundled up in a warm sweater and a hat to attend a party. The weather reached a record cold here of 19 degrees.
I rested all day on Christmas Eve to attend a party. I was able to stand and sing bad karaoke! Very exciting!
The most exciting part of my Christmas Eve was my ability to dance and have a good time until well after midnight! I was shocked I could do it, but I was almost completely pain-free! Merry Christmas to me.
It was more than I could’ve ever asked for. I felt such peace, and my heart was at rest. I felt hope for a future without pain. 😊
I was able to take one photograph of the moon with my DSLR but had to sit down immediately afterward.
This is the moon photo I shot of the “Yellow Moon.”
I don't think Gollum could’ve done a better job himself!
😉
It’s a new day and a new year. I continue to believe this will be a year of healing. Thank you for reading!
I know I’ve missed some excellent writing here on Medium, and I look forward to reading everyone’s writing as soon as I regain my mental energy. I hope you enjoyed the pictograph, and have a wonderful weekend!
A video clip for those who don’t know Gollum
Thank you to the hard-working editors of The Woodworkers of the World Unite for hosting this story.
Mia Verita enjoys photography, sketching, writing poetry, and sharing inspirational stories.
If you’d like to read Mia Verita’s stories and those of other Medium members, you can join Medium using her affiliate link. She’ll receive a small portion of the membership fee at no additional cost to you.
