SON BARRY HAS OSTEOARTHRITIS

By OLIVENE GODFREY

Barry received bad news when he had his annual physical
exam this week. He found out he has osteoarthritis in
his knees, hands, ankle and hip. We had suspected
that he had arthritis in his hands and knees but were
shocked by the hip diagnosis.

About a year ago, Barry did some heavy lifting here
and was in severe pain for several days. He thought he
had a pulled muscle and that with rest, it would heal.
Barry takes after his late dad, Ralph, who never
complained about any aches and pains until they became
acute. I think he was as surprised by the hip diagnosis
as I was.

I recently read that this kind of arthritis is the
most common and comes with aging and disrupts the normal
functioning of the joints and bones or tissue surrounding
it in a wear-and -tear way. It causes pain that tends to
be made worse by strenuous activity and relieved by
rest. I have this kind of arthritis in my knees and
hands and it breaks my heart that Barry may have
inherited the condition from me.

Barry sees the doctor again soon to review the lab work
results and outline a health plan for him. We are hoping
the lab work doesn't bring any more surprises.
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On a lighter note, my late husband's sister, Agnes,
and I enjoyed a long telephone conversation recently.
She lives in a small town in northeast Georgia, located
on the other side of our mountain from our house in
northwest Georgia. Since Agnes doesn't own a computer,
I send her a copy of my columns each week. and. she
paid me a much appreciated compliment when she said
that she feels like she is reading a personal letter
to her when she reads my columns. I told her that during
the 40 or so years I have had columns published, I
have always written them as if I were writing to only
one person, someone like, YOU.

I have written long letters to friends and relatives
as far back as I can remember. And, when I was nine,
I wrote, directed and produced a play for neighborhood
kids to perform for our parents. Our "theater" was
my father's barn and we charged one penny for admission
to the play. And, when I graduated from high school,
I received a stack of boxes filled with pretty
stationery as gifts. Over the years
. besides my newspaper work. I've written about
a dozen novels. Three were published by a German
publisher and I am too tired now to try to sell my
other manuscripts. I have debated with other writers
if the compulsion to write is a blessing or a curse.
I still don't know the answer but at 78, I still
have the compulsion.

See you next time.