Live for today, because tomorrow's not promised. Sandra lives by this motto. It hits closer to home for her than the average person. Beautiful and confident on the outside, Sandra is the perfect mentor to the girls she helps. She gives them all the best advice and tells them the truth, no sugar coating, about the realities of being a successful, black woman in this world. But the real Sandra isn't revealed by what she says. It's what she doesn't say that holds the key to her happiness...
"Why in the hell do doctors' appointments take so long?!" Sandra thought as she sat anxiously in the waiting room of her doctor's office. As she fidgeted and bit her nails she continued to think. "I mean, you'd think because they're dealing with sick people, they'd move with some sense of urgency. I've been coming here every month for over a year. Don't I get priority treatment?"
She looked up at the wall clock above the front desk. She'd only been waiting for half an hour. Sandra bit some of her pinky nail and spit it across the room.
"Ugh! I really need to quit doing this." she thought then shoved her hands in the pockets of her denim leggins. That 30 minutes felt more like 30 hours! By now, Sandra thought she'd be used to the waiting. Unfortunately, coming to get checked out never got easier.
"Ms. Cole?" The medical secretary called from behind the desk.
"Right here." she said and hurried over to the desk. "How you been doing?"
"I'm pretty good. How you been?" the secretary responded with a smile.
"Alright, I guess. Anxious as usual."
"Aww, don't be anxious. You're in good hands. You know that."
Sandra let out a sigh. "Yeah, I know, but it's not you guys I'm worried about."
The secretary smiled. "I understand. Monica's waiting for you. Come on back."
Sandra walked down the corridor and followed Monica, the medical assistant, to the back of the clinic where the examination rooms were. She folded her arms and shivered in reaction to the rush of cool air that welcomed her when she entered the sterile exam room. The smell of bleach was pomiinent. "It must have been mopped recently." she thought.
After checking Sandra's vitals, weight, and height Monica laid a hospital gown across the examining table. She then instructed Sandra to change into the gown and wait for Dr. Kennedy before leaving the room and closing the door behind her.
Sandra slowly undressed. Each time she removed a piece of clothing she looked over the part of her body it once covered. Once she had taken everything off and didn't notice any unusual marks she looked up and whispered "Thank you, Lord!". Finally, she put on her hospital gown and sat on the exam table to wait for Dr. Kennedy's arrival.
The clinic seemed eerily quiet that day. The only sounds Sandra could hear were the ticking of the clock and her veery own breathing. She stood up and started to pace back and forth across the small room.
About ten minutes later there was a light tapping at the door then it slowly began to open. A lump formed in Sandra's throat.
"Hi there, Sandra." Dr. Kennedy said and let herself in.
'Hi..." Sandra said swallowing hard to get rid of the lump in her throat.
"How ya been feelin'?" she said in her thick southern accent. "The new medicine I gave ya treatin' ya alright?"
"Yeah, Dr. Kennedy. It's fine. I still feel pretty normal. A little tired, but that's it."
"Well a lil' fatigue's okay. Any body aches or night sweats? The medicine helping with that?"
"None of that. The pills are doing their job."
"Alright. Awesome. Now, let me take a look at ya." Dr. Kennedy said and motioned for Sandra to lay back on the exam table.
Sandra laid completely still as Dr. Kennedy rubbed her cold, freshly washed hands over her body. This was the most uncomfortable part for Sandra. She hated letting this woman touch all over her. Even knowing she was a doctor, Sandra still felt violated.
Once she was done, Dr. Kennedy stood up and placed her hands on her hips. "You can sit up, darlin'." she said. "Everything looks good. No new marks or legions. I gotta admit, Sandra, I'm impressed. You're in really good shape. Givin' that virus a run for it's money, huh?"
Sandra smiled for the first time since she'd been there. "I'm trying. I really am. I got kids I need to be around for."
"Well, you keep it up. At this rate the virus won't have a chance to mutate. I wanna see you live a long life like that basketball player. What's his name..." Dr. Kennedy said then looked up in deep thought, rubbing her chin.
"Magic Johnson."
"Yep. That's it. He's a great example. Welp, you're good to go if you don't have any questions or nothin'."
Sandra shook her head. "Nope. No questions for me."
"Okay, darlin'. You can get dressed and ready to go!" Dr. Kennedy said cheerfully and left the room.
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