I knew the day was going to come, but I didn't expect it to come as suddenly as it did. Yesterday, I received a letter from my gynecologist saying that he is closing his office and retiring as of 15 September. I have had him as my GYN for 26 years, so this is very disconcerting news for me.
My GYN is only a couple of years older than I am, so I was shocked that he is retiring already--I expected him to work for another five years, at least. I guess I will be facing the retiring of my internist and dentist, next. This is one of the hardest things about getting older and I have not been looking forward to it at all. It will take me quite a while to get over this--if I ever will. I ADORED my GYN and always enjoyed seeing him once a year--as much as a woman could EVER enjoy her yearly exam, anyway. ;)
I think what has me most confused, though, is the speed of this retirement. I would never have expected him to give less than 2 months notice to his patients and it wouldn't have been surprising if the letter would have reached me six months ago. I hope I'm reading too much into this, but there seems to be a haste here that I find very surprising.
After mulling over the letter yesterday, I mentioned to K that there has to be more to this retirement than what is seen on the surface. I was very surprised by his confrontational response when he asked me, "Just WHAT do you think is behind it?" I told him that I was hoping this decision didn't have anything to do with the doctor's health or anyone's health in this family. K backed down and let it go at that. Later, I realized what K was asking me--whether or not I thought the retirement came out of the doctor's worry over the possibility of the health care bill being passed. The thought never occurred to me and I was taken aback to think K might be FOR the bill in any way, shape, or form. We don't talk politics a lot--mainly because I think we are at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of what we believe--and it is best to stay away from it in every way. It's not easy living with someone who has opposite views than you on some important issues.
I'm Sad
