Irritants along the way

There are two things that rather irritate T during the recovery process. The first is the IV pole. We have to admit, the pole is a great invention. Imagine having to deal with all these bags and recording instruments in some other way. Having one needle stick and a multi-receiver for all the tubes is great too. But T has a few goals on his white board, and number four is to walk. He started walking yesterday morning. Getting ready for the walk is quite a process involving a Colton Cape, our personal creation which takes a hospital gown, puts it around the back, and ties it at the neck. This creates modesty for the backside, something hospital gowns are notoriously lacking. Next are the slippy socks which keep T from winding up on the floor. Finally we unplug the master electrical cord attached to the IV pole on wheels, wind all the tubes up into T's hand, and set out for the walk. We are in Pod B so have the nursing station in the center with about 15 rooms encircling it. There are tables, blanket shelving, extra chairs, the occasional janitorial cart, and a variety of other items scattered around the station half-walls. This is the obstacle course that T travels several times a day. It's one thing to walk with the pole and quite another to take it to the loo, as you might imagine.

The second irritation is the cast. T has a hard cast on his left arm from his elbow to his fingers. This was on him when he came out of the operating room. I guess it protects the area from which the flap was taken. It needs to be above T's heart to avoid the tingling feeling. I'm not sure T has ever had a cast before; if he did it was before he was sixteen since he's been a part of my life since then. Always sympathetic of students in casts prior to this experience, T is going to be downright indulgent now. He really does not like that thing!

But it is like he said, these things are a nuisance. And that's okay - God is all over this and us. We are aware of His protection through this process and are thankful for those who stand in the gap to pray us through. Bless you all!