Eras: Taylor Swift and Recovery Hopes

 READER WARNING: The textual authority of hope will not be Scripture in this post. Instead hope comes from a contemporary Psalmist, Taylor Swift.

The pre-op nurse had difficulty inserting the IV, so Madeline had the painful experience but was assured they would try again only once she was asleep. The nurse was kind and gentle and lamented the mishap (it happens often). Oddly, Madeline has pierced her own ears (several times) but the idea of IV needles is a real worry. 

She tries not to worry, and her doctor is a partner in the practice. He often says, "I'll do my job; you do yours. What's my job again?" Madeline says, "You do all the worry. I just keep breathing." [Breathe is a Swift song about loss and friendship]. 

When the anesthesiologist entered the room, Madeline's worry increased. We all began to cry. Dr. Wood could sense the energy and asked Madeline if she wanted some music for the journey from pre-op to the OR. Taylor Swift immediately emanated from the phone speaker as the sleepy time playlist. Calm began to emerge. We continued discussing our favorite albums and our shared love for T Swift. Madeline noted that she is hoping to see Taylor Swift in concert in May in Nashville (83 days from today). Dr. Wood said she couldn't believe Swift isn't scheduled for Salt Lake City. 

Eras is the title of Swift's 2023 tour. According to Swift, Eras is a "a journey through all of my musical eras of my career." According to Dr. Wood, ERAS is the medical acronym for "Enhanced recovery after surgery." Dr. Wood doesn't see "Eras" as an epochal movement of Swift's musical career but as an important protocol to continue organ function and reduce stress following an operation. ERAS are known to increase physiological and psychological well-being in patients, including shortened hospital stays. You can see where this new learning is headed.... T Swift's tour is an epic journey for healing....

Madeline will receive a personalized neck brace Tuesday morning. She will need to wear this 24-hours a day for the next 3-4 months (hoping for 82.5 days). There will be some losses given the wearing of a neck brace. Swift knows loss. 

She knows the range of the teenager experience. A writer at The Guardian gave a crappy review (I believe journalists call this a "mixed review") of Fearless but captured Swift's brilliant understanding of adolescence, "She is fantastically good at regarding teenage life with a kind of wistful, sepia-toned nostalgia... You applaud her skill, while feeling slightly unsettled by the thought of a teenager pontificating away like Yoda..." I like her wisdom; go ahead and be a "baby Yoda." 

Most of Swift's albums travel the contours of adolescence. She's a psalmist for the early years. "Fifteen" is appropriately about the first day of high school; "Change" is about facing and overcoming setbacks; "Innocent" reminds us of our personal agency and power in the face of others' seeking our destruction. Adolescence is recognized as a season of early life, but much of it carries throughout adulthood minus lunchrooms and study halls. 

Swift is more than a companion for youth; she is a narrator of the human experience. She understands life, whether for a 14 year old girl entering high school or a 40+ year-old man trying to figure out how to live fully present. "This is me trying" is quintessential dad-rock solidarity. "Hoax" demonstrates the complexity of feelings we hold in any given moment reflecting on the past. And finally, the lyrics of her newest album could be fodder for a mid-life memoir. She sings, "It's me, hi, I'm the problem it's me," and every middle aged mom and dad who has done inner-work knows the truth of this. She holds melancholy, joy, disappointment, and the host of emotions across her corpus. She sings for the kid in the PICU and the parent sitting bedside. 

We like Taylor Swift at our house; all of us. Her Eras tour might be Swift's "journey through all of my musical eras of my career." But for us it will be part of Madeline's recovery. This will be an added protocol for "Enhanced recovery after surgery." 

I finish this as Madeline is emerging from the OR. I needed a playful writing exercise to pass the time while waiting. Here is hoping for good news in the next few minutes from Dr. Brockmeyer; as we wait, T Swift will resound in our ears throughout the coming days..... "where I pace in my pen and my friends found friends who care..."