Missed Photos

It's been a long time since I last posted. Spring Break ended. School started again. And the sun, with its usual timing, began to shine. Japanese plum trees are starting to show their pink blossoms all over the city. And I missed taking some photos.
Here is the photo I didn't take on Monday at 9am when I was at the doctor's office with my sweet mother-in-law, waiting to be seen. See her face, drawn from lack of sleep and set in sadness from depression. Notice her clothes; despite how she felt, she made sure to put on a skirt and her favorite wool coat.
Here's the photo I didn't take in the hospital emergency room after the family doctor recommended we go there next. Look at all the other people waiting patiently, despite all their injuries and illnesses. See how my mother-in-law (Monika) has her head on my shoulder and is clutching my hand as she quietly talks. If photos had sound, you would hear what she is saying and would wonder, as I did, what it all meant.
Here's the photo I didn't take at 1:15 as we then waited in the Minor Injuries Treatment Unit. There, in the background, are some of the same patients we saw before in the ER. The woman in the foreground is the nurse asking Monika why she has come to the hospital, and you can see Monika staring at her with her mouth firmly closed. This doesn't please the nurse - notice her expression as she tells her that she must speak if she wants treatment.
The last photo that I didn't take is in the common room on the psych ward at 5:40 as we waited an hour and a half for a bed to be ready. See the blue pyjamas that Monika is wearing and the intense expression on her face as she stares into my eyes and tells me that it is utterly urgent. You can see some other patients sitting at the table looking sad and desolate.
48 hours later, I am getting ready to go to the hospital and visit Monika. I know that she is not doing any better and am prepared to see the sadness and hear the desperation in her voice. Despite everything, I feel like I shared something special and intimate with her when we waited together for so many hours.