And this

So here's the most real news. My cousin's husband collapsed three nights ago. Turns out he has a very weak heart. Today they catheterize him to see exactly what's going on. They suspect a blockage in the vessels feeding the heart. If it's extensive, they may have to do open heart surgery right away. My cousin thinks the doctors are trying to prepare them. Her husband is a muscular fit guy who goes to the gym every day and doesn't drink or smoke. I hesitate to write this because I haven't asked permission, and this might be violating their privacy. But my heart is in my throat, waiting for news. I feel as if I should be there, with my cousin in Virginia. She is the closest thing I have to a sister, and we both know this is how our mothers would have done it, teleporting themselves to the sister facing trouble at a moment's notice. My cousin is preternaturally calm. She is a woman of deep faith. We're all praying. And yes, it does seem that this sort of medical crisis has been happening a lot lately. But I refuse to add one to the other or draw any larger conclusions, except to note that life is just like this sometimes, especially when you have a large family and large numbers of them have reached a certain age. When there are a lot of people you love, your heart is bound to clutch and ache now and then. Sometimes more now than then.

Update at 4 PM: "No blockage. Pacemaker needed." That is the text I just got from my cousin. In the scheme of things, this is very good news, even though her husband doesn't quite understand all the jubilation. "I have to get a piece of metal implanted in my chest," he says. And since he feels well again, after a week of resting in the hospital, the averted alternative, open heart surgery, is a mere figment to him. The doctors don't actually know why his heart should be so weak. Could be he was just born that way. Now my cousin's worried about how she will convince him not to lift anything for four weeks while things settle with the pacemaker. This is a much better worry than she had two days ago.