Many Miles

One of the annual steps we take as part of our tax preparation is to calculate the number of miles traveled for medical care.

This year's family total was 495.  All but about 20 of those miles were for my daughter's appointments.

Granted, that's not all diabetes-related.  There's the orthodontist, and the eye doctor, and the regular pediatrician and the dentist, and another specialist thrown in here or there for good measure. 

Regardless of the destination, that number translates into significant time spent in our car.  Many homework assignments have been completed there.  Many snacks have been consumed.  Many magazines have been read.  Many games of Angry Birds have been played.

Some of the car time, and we'll add waiting room time, is not quality.  Video games or mindless radio listening are sometimes the order of the day.

Yet every so often it becomes an opportunity.  Conversations take place about school, friends, or the world around us which we might not ordinarily get into.  Medical conversations take place too, particularly on the way home, reviewing what happened at the office. 

The travel to these appointments often takes time away from the school day, or pre-empts an after school activity.  The driving there and back can be tedious or occasionally challenging.   It sometimes feels like time we will never reclaim.  Every so often, though, it becomes time we never otherwise would have had.