Pope Recovering, Silently

Pope John Paul II munched on cookies Friday and jotted messages to an aide about his condition as he recovered from surgery to ease another breathing crisis.

Despite the fact that the pontiff spent a second night in the hospital Friday, the Vatican took pains to emphasize the positive: the 84-year-old pope was breathing on his own, showed no signs of pneumonia and ate a breakfast that included coffee with milk, yogurt and 10 small cookies.

The tracheotomy tube that was inserted into the pope's throat while Catholics around the world prayed for him has worked, reports CBS News Correspondent Mark Phillips. But there is still the risk of infection and there's another problem: a pope who could barely speak before the operation can now not speak at all.

"Upon the advice of his doctors, the pope must not speak for several days," said papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Walls.
Each detail of his condition was shadowed by uncertainty, including how long the tracheotomy device would remain and if the pope would regain full command of his voice. No official health update was expected until Monday.

The pontiff's rush by ambulance Thursday to Rome's Gemelli Polyclinic hospital — a replay of a breathing crisis earlier this month — crushed hopes he was out of danger. Just a day earlier, he made his longest public appearance — 30 minutes — since returning to the Vatican from the hospital Feb. 10.

Surgeons cut a small breathing hole in the pope's throat to bypass suspected obstructions and insert the tube. The most common uses for a tracheotomy are to ensure that better quality air reaches the lungs and as a device for removing mucus, which can foster bacteria.

"It was a question of assuring adequate breathing of the patient. ... He (the pope) has a significant feeling of relief," Navarro-Valls. He denied reports that John Paul was placed on a "mechanical" respirator.

"He's breathing on his own," Navarro-Valls said, and there were no signs of fever or pneumonia.

The next major health decision could involve the tracheotomy tube.

In some patients the tube is left permanently, requiring significant changes in speech. Some people learn to talk through the tube. Another option is to briefly plug it — akin to holding your breath — and speak in short bursts. Either choice would be complicated by the pope's Parkinson's disease, which causes hand tremors and difficulties in coordination and muscle control.

For the moment, John Paul's only means of expression is the written word.

After the operation, he wrote a note to aides saying, "What did they do to me?" Navarro-Valls said, describing it as a joking message.

"I am always 'totus tuus'" — the pope's motto in Latin that Navarro-Valls translated as "I am completely in your hands."

The image drove home a clear Vatican worry: that the pope's ailments gradually reduce his abilities to communicate — a hallmark of his 28-year papacy that's included 104 international trips and several best-selling books.

"This is a big problem," said Vatican Cardinal Renato Martino, mentioning the pope's temporary inability to speak. "He will find other ways to communicate, that we know already."

In Saint Peter's Square, the mood is of deep concern, reports CBS News Correspondent Aileen Sirgany. While people are praying for the best, many are bracing for what they say could be big changes at the Vatican.

Some believe it's time for the pope to retire. "The pope has done a very good job," said Ben Crul, a tourist from the Netherlands. "It's time to him to give the task to someone else."

Around the world, worshippers offered prayers for the pontiff.

In Mexico, where John Paul has been received ecstatically five times, concern was high but attitudes were hopeful.

"If he could survive a bullet, which is worse than what he is going through now, then hopefully God will want him to survive this," said Marianela Hernandez, referring to the 1981 assassination attempt in St. Peter's Square.

"I think it will be difficult, but not impossible," she said, standing in front of Mexico City's Basilica of Guadalupe.

"We wanted to wish him to carry his suffering like Christ did, that he accept this suffering as one more cross with which God marked him," said Kasia Gryczowska, 17, after a Mass in the pope's birthplace, Wadowice, Poland. "So all those who suffer will bear it with the same spirit."

Concern spread beyond Catholics as well.

Gail Nemanic, 72, of Minneapolis, Minn., said she was a Lutheran, but accompanied a Catholic friend to Mexico City's Basilica of Guadalupe "especially because of the pope."

"I don't see him as a deity,'' she said, "but I think he sends a good message to the world for peace."