Cut Out
For the second time in ninety days, I’ve had skin cancer removed. This was a Basel cell on my left ear. They did the procedure this morning. The anesthesia, such as it was, has worn off. My ear feels like an animal of prey grabbed my ear and tried to drag me underwater or off into the woods for dinner. It hurts. It aches. It itches for some odd reason.
Of course, it’s no wonder. They cut out the growth. Then, when they saw all the margins were clear, they put me back together. Luckily, I didn’t need a skin graft. But they had to stretch my skin to get enough to sew. That involved cutting beneath the skin they wanted to use to loosen it, so they could pull it together. They spared no effort. There was lots of tugging. They cauterized as they went, and that gave me a tingly sensation. Then they gave me six stiches, just in time. Now I have a lumpy white bandage for twenty-four hours. After that, it’s my choice. What hurts is everything that was cut, cooked, and pulled.
I’m writing now because it distracts me from what’s happening on the side of my head, an achy, dull form of memory. It’s also helping keep me awake because I’m surprisingly tired, which seems odd because I got a good seven hours of sleep last night and felt really perky this morning. The only thing I can figure is that my body, recognizing it’s been injured, wants a timeout so it can concentrate on the healing job. My body will just have to wait. Although, I might go lie down. For a minute. Promise.