Part II - Re-expansion of the lung may take several days with the chest tube left in place.
The second time my lung collapsed was one of the worst experiences of my life. I was sitting in on a round-table philosophy seminar, a sophomore in college, discussing The Consolation of Philosophy. Boethius, a Roman philosopher and politiciain, was in prison for crimes he did not commit. He was sentenced to die, and, perhaps understandibly, feeling very sorry for himself. His old master, Lady Philosophy, visits him and reproaches him for whining. “Why are you complaining that you you are down? Fortune goes up and down, but at least when she’s down she’s being honest?”He learns, through dialogue and poetry, to be grateful for trials, to trust in God for his happiness, and not to fear death.
In the middle of this class discussion, I felt that now-familiar phantom-cramping sensation just between my shoulder blade. Without wanting to make a scene, I calmly got up, put my shoes on, and walked to the student health center. Unfortunately, my plan backfired, for once word got back to my classmates that my lung had collapsed, without knowing the context, they were quite concerned. My friend Judah cried.
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