TWO LUNGS

How can an educated, professorial, Europhile, American male who's lived more than 60 years with all senses intact, who's rubbed elbows with presidents, the rich and famous, and the Dalai Lama, who's lived in Dublin and Bonn, who flew on the mission to drop emergency supplies at Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, and who's my friend of thirty years and go-to catsitter--how can this person, who prefers to remain anonymous for purposes of this blog post and whom I shall call Larry, how can this worldy-wise individual not know that we, all homo sapiens, have not one but two lungs?

He called last night to ask about Colleen, which inevitably led to medical detail about her status and about lung transplants.

"We have two lungs?" he said, sounding astonished.

"Uh, yes, Larry."

"Two lungs?" he said again, incredulous. Sometimes it can take a while for Larry to grasp basic life information like this. 

"You mean you thought we only had one?" I said.

"Uh, I guess. Do we really have two lungs?" 



This vignette is dedicated to Colleen and our family members who've listened to my Larry stories for years now. Colleen, I know you've got a big smile on your face. I don't think Larry will mind a welcome laugh at his expense. He's a kind, thoughtful man. Just clueless about anatomy.

Larry, if you're reading this, see drawing below:

PS to Larry: I just read this post over the phone to Colleen at Johns Hopkins. She did, indeed, laugh! So thank you for that, my friend. "Did he really not know we have two lungs?" she said to me. "That's exactly what I said to him, Col!"

She asked me to tell you that she's been enjoying your "Irish Pics," the music you recorded for me some time ago and that she downloaded to her own ipod and has been listening to in her hospital bed at night. In the suddenness and flurry of having to leave quickly for Baltimore, she remembered to pack her ipod but forgot the charger. So she's conserving the battery by waiting 'til evening to use the ipod. It's been a godsend, she says.