chapter two Get On With It I knew I had her. I may have been the one in extended care recovery with two broken ankles, a smashed hip, a few broken ribs, a punctured lung, a cracked scull, a broken arm and a crushed hand, but Xel (pronounced 'Shell') was really the one who was the prisoner. As a nurses aid and the new girl on the ward, she worked the graveyard shift. I'm sorry, I mean the night shift. I was told they don't like to use the 'g' word at the hospital. It's interesting though how that term came into being. In London during the fifteen hundreds, medicine wasn't what it is today. Early death was common. Graveyards filled quickly. To make room, the dead were exhumed and entire families were buried together. It became clear some were being buried too early. One out of twenty coffins were found to have claw marks on the inside. They began drilling a hole in the coffin and then a string would be run to the surface where it was attached to a small bell. The wealthy would hire people to sit by the grave site in case the bell tolled. Hence the term 'graveyard shift'. However, if you understand the world the way I do, it gives a whole new meaning to the words 'dinner bell'. In truth, Xel was one of the lucky ones. She was born in a small village on the Yucatan peninsula where there are few opportunities. Her family managed to persuade a missionary to sponsor her to a nursing school in the states. She graduated at the top of her class and found herself in high demand. To her credit, she returned home as she had promised she would. By taking a job at the Cancun hospital, she was able to help bring modern medicine to her native people in the surrounding Mayan villages. I had only known her from my short stay at the hospital, but I found her background surprising. She was a free spirit who became bored quickly and dare I say, she had little patience. So I decided to push her buttons a little. If I'm going to tell a story, then I'm going to tell it my way. "I understand what this is about Xel." I told her. "You're the type who likes to read the last page of a book first. Straight to the action. No time for the details. Fine then, I'll give you what you want." On the final day of the 12th bak'tun, Lord Pacal rose and ripped the still beating heart from my chest. My dead body was then tossed down the 91 steps of the pyramid of KuKulcan. I awoke in this bed to hear the doctor say I had broken more than half the bones in my body. He then quickly tried to use his bedside humor to add that it wasn't so bad, because half the bones in the body are in the hands and feet. "What?" cried Xel. "I've read your chart and it says nothing about your heart being ripped out. It mentions a missing little toe, but nothing about a missing heart." "That's the beauty of it." I replied, "It happened in 2012, so I have many years before it happens again. And I can tell you I need the time to prepare. Death is very painful." "This doesn't make any sense. I'm totally confused!" "Of course you are. You wanted to hear the end of the story first. If you would let me tell it my way, it would make more sense. But if you have bed pans you need to clean....." "OK, fine. Tell it your way. Just get on with it" I knew she didn't mean that last comment to come out the way it sounded. It was just a bit of her impatience showing. I used my good hand to bring my index finger to my nose with a wink and a nod that she should show more respect. The embarrassed look on her face let me know she understood. "Good", I said, "Then I will as you put it, get on with it"