Yup, I came THIS close...

July 12 was a momentous day, because that was when I was supposed to see Dr. Bruce for my six-week follow-up. I had been feeling great, and I expected him to find my progress acceptable, but one never knows, does one?

Dr. Bruce examined my incision carefully, noting the progress of its healing, and the alopecia that had reared its head since the last visit.

Alopecia, as you know, is described in the dictionary as "absence of the hair from skin areas where it normally is present."

My hair was receding from the incision. I told him I had noticed that, and was not exactly overjoyed about it. He suggested it was temporary.

I pointed out to him that it had been two months since the surgery, and it was about time for stuff to be shaping up correctly.

Dr. Bruce leaned back in his chair, smiled and informed me sagely that it takes 18-24 months to recover fully from neuro surgery, so I was just getting started.

Wow. That was a wake-up call. I guess I needed to relax a little and be more patient, as he had advised me a month earlier.

As Erlinda and I sat there and listened to him, we recognized that we should be thankful that my left eye was continuing to improve, opening up a little more each day.

It still produced an image that was tilted slightly to the right, but I guess I just had to wait for it to right itself.

As I asked him for more details about the surgery, he describe the clamp that was used to hold my head steady during the operation.

It's a three-pointed device that he first applied by pressing the points into both sides of my head with all his strength.

Then he twisted a locking device to apply 60 lbs. of pressure to the clamp, biting into my scalp and penetrating to the bone. Whew! Glad I wasn't awake for that.

We settled our account with Miss Watson at the front desk (nice lady) and headed out.

Of course, we had to stop by the Tony Thwaites Wing to pay our respects.

We said hello to Claudine Daley, the wing's assistant manager, who had been very helpful in resolving our bill.

I'd had a number of nurses in the two weeks I was in the hospital.

None was kinder than Tanesha Brown. She was lively, positive and very friendly.

I'd taken my laptop along so I could show the medical staff pictures of themselves in the photo diary.

Alison Mendez, Sister Yvonne Grey, and Nurse Jones enjoyed seeing themselves on the screen.

Pretty soon, the word spread.

In a little while a bevy of staff had gathered to catch a glimpse of themselves and their team in action.

We posed for one last, nostalgic photo outside the wing, and then we were off again.

This time, our destination was Hope Gardens.

You may recall that we dropped in here when we last visited Dr. Bruce a month earlier.

At that time we'd enjoyed the services of the Ashanti Oasis restaurant, and vowed to return.

We drove through the garden, which we hadn't had time to do on the last visit, and enjoyed the simple serenity of it.

Under one tree after another, we saw one, two or more people sitting on the benches provided, soaking up shade, and drinking in the sweet air of Hope Gardens.

Even Erlinda tried it, under the spreading limbs of this huge oak, or banyan, or whatever it is.

Yes, I confess. I don't know what it is. Do you?

I would have sat with her, but you know how it goes, I get to shoot the pix, she gets to star in them.

And why did I shoot this bench?

Because it's empty for a reason.

It's waiting for you and your family to enjoy the beauty and tranquility of Hope Gardens when next you visit Jamaica.

The bougainvilleas that dotted the gardens grew in freedom and abandon, offering copious bunches of blossoms with their gorgeous petals.

There were stands of palms at various places around the gardens.

They were tall and majestic, and I kinda think some of them have been there since the old days, when I visited the gardens as a child.

Is that possible? I dunno. Maybe.

I wonder if the gardeners intended for this yellow cosmos to show up among these other plants?

From what I hear, a cosmos tends to show up on its own schedule. So it may have made the decision on its own.

I liked this flower with its variegated tones.

At first I thought it was a lily, but now I'm not so sure. And Erlinda, who's my go-to girl on flowers, scratched her head too.

Do you know? Can you drop me a note to tell me what it is? Thanx.

I got down real low to take this shot on the main meadow of the gardens.

I've found that shots from an unusual angle can offer some interesting ideas on a subject.

I loved the colorful poinciana tree in the center, the view of the mountains, and the feather-like clouds.

As you know, Jamaica's climate is known for its warmth (I'm speaking euphemistically).

So watering is absolutely required for the survival of the plants.

As you can see in the background, it was in progress when we visited.

And in the center of the gardens sits the Ashanti Oasis restaurant, with its nature motif.

It doesn't even have walls, so you can view the gardens around you as you enjoy your delicious vegetarian meal.

Erlinda and I posed on the bridge that ran across the width of the restaurant.

Then we sat for our meal.

We had the feathery beauty of a palm right beside us as we prepared to savor hot pumpkin soup.

Erlinda had rice and peas, sweet and sour gluten, tofu, and more.

Yum-m-m!

And because I thought she'd made a great menu choice, I had exactly the same.

I promise you, it was one of the best vegetarian meals I've had.

I kinda wished I had a couple extra stomachs tucked away that I could just pull out on request, so I could have had a second course.

It had been a great day. I'd gotten a good evaluation from Dr. Bruce. I'd had a chance to say hello to people who'd been kind to me during my hospitalization. Then we'd been able to visit Hope Gardens, which was an experience with lots of nostalgia for us.