A good day to arrive at St Thomas's hospital

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Above is a good "My View for a While" photo, to use an expression coined by Fr Z. I'm on the 7th floor of St Thomas's hospital, opposite the Palace of Westminster. I arrived here yesterday on the feast of St Thomas of Canterbury, after whom the hospital is named: it goes back to within living memory of the holy Bishop and Martyr.

Today the consultant surgeon brought me the very welcome news that the waiting is over and tomorrow morning, I am to go under the surgeon's knife. Do remember me in your prayers - indeed thank you for all the prayers you have offered already. Several priests have very kindly offered their Mass intentions for me over the past couple of weeks and I am most grateful for that. If you have scheduled Mass intentions, a memento would be much appreciated.

On a practical note, general visits are not encouraged. If all goes well and there are no complications, I'll be in the intensive recovery unit for a bit, then gradually clearing out my lungs and staggering around until I reach the exit criterion which is walking up some stairs, apparently. The normal estimate for that is 5-7 days. Thanks be to God, I have sisters and a deputed logistics team to look after necessary supplies - spare pyjamas, newspapers, good coffee, Puligny Montrachet, you know the sort of thing.

Once I'm back and resting, and fit enough to sing the Preface, I'll sit back and direct arrangements for a solemn High Mass in thanksgiving to the Lord if He decides to give me some more years to make reparation for my sins and help a few people get to heaven. The subject of meditation today in the book that I am using (from St Alphonsus, of course) is "The Shortness of Life", beginning with the verse "All flesh is grass." That was most comforting.





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