We are just over a year in India and we just had our first visit to an emergency room yesterday! It's easy to sit and write about this experience today because each member of our family is happy and healthy. We made it through that first harrowing ordeal. We pray it's the last. Wouldn't that be great?
So, here's what happened. Our family was having some down time on a Saturday afternoon. We decided to go cruising around on our motorcycle -- all 5 of us. Nope, didn't have any problems on the bike. We went all the way to the far end of town, the Old City, and had a look around. We weaved in and out of traffic. Chris likes to call this Matrix driving. Nope, didn't have any problems in Old City. We ended up in the American-style coffee shop where we ordered a green apple soda for the boys, some iced coffee drinks for ourselves, and 2 brownies with ice cream. This is where it all went down . . .
Before I go into the details, I want to share something I found pretty interesting as I was reflecting last night. Lots of people expressed concern for us as we packed away our small children and headed here. They were worried about how safe we'd be in this new place. What if something happened? Well, something did. Where did our first big accident happen in India? In the most American and modern-style place in our city. No, it didn't happen on a crazy rickshaw ride. It didn't happen on our marble floors in our home. It didn't happen because of the crazy electrical wiring in the houses here. It didn't happen with one of the mangy, stray dogs in our area. It didn't happen on rusty playground equipment at the park. It basically happened at Starbucks. Just another reminder of what Chris used to tell people when they asked, "Will it be safe?" He'd reply, "The safest place to be is in the middle of God's will."
So what happened? Here goes. Jed and Abe were enjoying their soda, but Abe got a little excited and spilled the soda all over the table, Jed's clothes, and the floor. We were just shaking our heads about his clumsiness and was getting frustrated over what to do about Jed with my baby sitting on my lap, when the waiters brought over the rest of our order and a new drink for the boys. About this time, Chris offered Abe a bite of ice cream and he ran around the coffee table to get it -- not paying attention to the soda on the floor. He slipped and his ear came down right on the edge of the glass coffee table. It hit hard and he started crying. Chris grabbed him while I tried to mop Jed off. Then I looked up and saw that there was blood on Abe's ear. I jumped up to help Chris, forgetting that I had Lucy in my arms. She kicked over my iced coffee and the glass broke everywhere while I went straight to Abe. I saw that his ear was sliced. It reminded me of when we'd put a notch in the animals' ears on the farm to tell them apart. We knew we needed to stop the bleeding and get him to the hospital.
We grabbed Jed, still sticky with soda, I put Lucy in the sling, praise God for the sling!!!!, Chris held Abe's ear with a wet wipe, and went out the door. On the street, by the motorcycle, Chris asked about the nearest hospital. While I grabbed Abe from him. Jed rode in front, the Chris, and then I got on back with the two little ones on my lap. This was the first time I've ever ridden a motorcycle in India by straddling it. Usually, because of decency and modesty, I ride side-saddle, but I didn't really think or care about that.
Thankfully, the hospital was just a few blocks away. We rushed in and were seen right away. Now, you need to understand that a hospital here and one that you're probably used to are two different things. We walked in and were pointed to the back desk. As soon as they saw us, they opened an examination room door -- where another woman was being seen by the doctor -- to show the doctor Abe's ear. Then, Chris was given a scrip to walk back to the front of the building and buy all the things that the doctor needed to put stitches in Abe's ear: rubber gloves, sutures, needle, gauze, etc. While we were waiting for him to finish getting the supplies, it started pouring outside. Everyone who was milling around outside made a mad dash for the door. So we stood for a minute with all the dripping wet people. Then, we came back and waited until the doctor was done with the last patient. At this point, they told me to wait in the waiting room while Chris took Abe upstairs with the doctor.
At this point, I was able to have a look around. There were probably 30 people waiting around to be seen. Jed was excited about the fish tank against the wall and kept walking over to it. A woman was pushed on a gurney right into the middle of the waiting room and made to sit there until the examination room opened up again. She had a big scar on her leg and her husband was holding the x-ray of her leg and waving it back and forth so it would dry. As I sat talking to Jed, I noticed a syringe with the cap on, but full of something, in the crease of the chair next to us. I asked the husband if it was his. No, he said. So, I told the person at the desk, "There's a syringe in this chair." He didn't seem at all concerned about it. Just took it and put it in the trash can under his desk. Can you imagine that going over well where we come from?
After a while, Abe came back down the stairs with Abe lying in his arms. You can imagine my concern as I saw Chris' stressed-out face and our son lying, motionless. What was going on? He only needed a few stitches! Chris told me through gritted teeth that the doctor made him wait outside -- even after a long disagreement about how Abe needed him in the room. The doc finally said he wouldn't do the procedure until Chris waited outside. We didn't know they were going to sedate him. We still had to pay for the work and supplies. This ended up being less than $70 all told. We got back on the motorcycle and I held Abe and Lucy while Chris drove very slowly home.
I'd like to say we both remembered those words about safety throughout all of yesterday afternoon, but that wouldn't be the whole truth. We both had moments of fear. We both had moments of anger. We both had moments of wishing we were back home in America where we knew what to do and how things would be handled. That's just the reality. But the bigger reality is what we knew from the beginning. God was there.
We got back to the house and Chris sat holding Abe while he woke up out of the sedation. It took almost 2 hours for him to be fully awake. At first, he came to and was trying to kick with his feet. Still a fighter!!!! He must have given those nurses a run for their money. When he saw that Daddy was holding him, and that Jed and I were there, he calmed down. Jed told him that he and I were going to get him some ice cream and coke to make coke floats. Chris asked him, "How much do I love you?" "This Much!!" Abe replied, as he stretched out his arms. So Jed and I went and got the treat and then our whole family watched a movie while we waited for Abe to get coherent enough to eat.
I made Abe's float first. As he began to eat, he looked up with a smile and said, "The ice ceems goin vight to my ear! It's makin me feel bettah!" We all had a good laugh and thanked God that he was back to normal. So, what did we learn from this whole thing?
Lucy is trying to see how big her mouth really is.
Abe on a much happier day.
Our boys goofing at the park. One last comment is about Jed through this whole thing. He loves his brother! We've been a bit concerned with how selfish he has acted as of late. He can be such a sweet, caring boy, and then next minute, throw a huge fit about some minuscule thing. We've been hoping that he will outgrow this phase soon. We're trying to teach him gratitude and thinking of others, but these lessons are hard at 4. Still, when Jed saw his brother hurt, he was quick to leave his special treat at the shop and head to the hospital. He sat quietly, was patient, and even made up a song to sing to his brother while we waited for the doc. It talked about Abe being brave and special and how we'd get him ice cream and how he was going to be okay. So sweet!!! So, I have hope that this boy will continue to show these great traits as he grows. So thankful that these brothers love each other so much!
So, here's what happened. Our family was having some down time on a Saturday afternoon. We decided to go cruising around on our motorcycle -- all 5 of us. Nope, didn't have any problems on the bike. We went all the way to the far end of town, the Old City, and had a look around. We weaved in and out of traffic. Chris likes to call this Matrix driving. Nope, didn't have any problems in Old City. We ended up in the American-style coffee shop where we ordered a green apple soda for the boys, some iced coffee drinks for ourselves, and 2 brownies with ice cream. This is where it all went down . . .
Before I go into the details, I want to share something I found pretty interesting as I was reflecting last night. Lots of people expressed concern for us as we packed away our small children and headed here. They were worried about how safe we'd be in this new place. What if something happened? Well, something did. Where did our first big accident happen in India? In the most American and modern-style place in our city. No, it didn't happen on a crazy rickshaw ride. It didn't happen on our marble floors in our home. It didn't happen because of the crazy electrical wiring in the houses here. It didn't happen with one of the mangy, stray dogs in our area. It didn't happen on rusty playground equipment at the park. It basically happened at Starbucks. Just another reminder of what Chris used to tell people when they asked, "Will it be safe?" He'd reply, "The safest place to be is in the middle of God's will."
So what happened? Here goes. Jed and Abe were enjoying their soda, but Abe got a little excited and spilled the soda all over the table, Jed's clothes, and the floor. We were just shaking our heads about his clumsiness and was getting frustrated over what to do about Jed with my baby sitting on my lap, when the waiters brought over the rest of our order and a new drink for the boys. About this time, Chris offered Abe a bite of ice cream and he ran around the coffee table to get it -- not paying attention to the soda on the floor. He slipped and his ear came down right on the edge of the glass coffee table. It hit hard and he started crying. Chris grabbed him while I tried to mop Jed off. Then I looked up and saw that there was blood on Abe's ear. I jumped up to help Chris, forgetting that I had Lucy in my arms. She kicked over my iced coffee and the glass broke everywhere while I went straight to Abe. I saw that his ear was sliced. It reminded me of when we'd put a notch in the animals' ears on the farm to tell them apart. We knew we needed to stop the bleeding and get him to the hospital.
We grabbed Jed, still sticky with soda, I put Lucy in the sling, praise God for the sling!!!!, Chris held Abe's ear with a wet wipe, and went out the door. On the street, by the motorcycle, Chris asked about the nearest hospital. While I grabbed Abe from him. Jed rode in front, the Chris, and then I got on back with the two little ones on my lap. This was the first time I've ever ridden a motorcycle in India by straddling it. Usually, because of decency and modesty, I ride side-saddle, but I didn't really think or care about that.
Thankfully, the hospital was just a few blocks away. We rushed in and were seen right away. Now, you need to understand that a hospital here and one that you're probably used to are two different things. We walked in and were pointed to the back desk. As soon as they saw us, they opened an examination room door -- where another woman was being seen by the doctor -- to show the doctor Abe's ear. Then, Chris was given a scrip to walk back to the front of the building and buy all the things that the doctor needed to put stitches in Abe's ear: rubber gloves, sutures, needle, gauze, etc. While we were waiting for him to finish getting the supplies, it started pouring outside. Everyone who was milling around outside made a mad dash for the door. So we stood for a minute with all the dripping wet people. Then, we came back and waited until the doctor was done with the last patient. At this point, they told me to wait in the waiting room while Chris took Abe upstairs with the doctor.
At this point, I was able to have a look around. There were probably 30 people waiting around to be seen. Jed was excited about the fish tank against the wall and kept walking over to it. A woman was pushed on a gurney right into the middle of the waiting room and made to sit there until the examination room opened up again. She had a big scar on her leg and her husband was holding the x-ray of her leg and waving it back and forth so it would dry. As I sat talking to Jed, I noticed a syringe with the cap on, but full of something, in the crease of the chair next to us. I asked the husband if it was his. No, he said. So, I told the person at the desk, "There's a syringe in this chair." He didn't seem at all concerned about it. Just took it and put it in the trash can under his desk. Can you imagine that going over well where we come from?
After a while, Abe came back down the stairs with Abe lying in his arms. You can imagine my concern as I saw Chris' stressed-out face and our son lying, motionless. What was going on? He only needed a few stitches! Chris told me through gritted teeth that the doctor made him wait outside -- even after a long disagreement about how Abe needed him in the room. The doc finally said he wouldn't do the procedure until Chris waited outside. We didn't know they were going to sedate him. We still had to pay for the work and supplies. This ended up being less than $70 all told. We got back on the motorcycle and I held Abe and Lucy while Chris drove very slowly home.
I'd like to say we both remembered those words about safety throughout all of yesterday afternoon, but that wouldn't be the whole truth. We both had moments of fear. We both had moments of anger. We both had moments of wishing we were back home in America where we knew what to do and how things would be handled. That's just the reality. But the bigger reality is what we knew from the beginning. God was there.
We got back to the house and Chris sat holding Abe while he woke up out of the sedation. It took almost 2 hours for him to be fully awake. At first, he came to and was trying to kick with his feet. Still a fighter!!!! He must have given those nurses a run for their money. When he saw that Daddy was holding him, and that Jed and I were there, he calmed down. Jed told him that he and I were going to get him some ice cream and coke to make coke floats. Chris asked him, "How much do I love you?" "This Much!!" Abe replied, as he stretched out his arms. So Jed and I went and got the treat and then our whole family watched a movie while we waited for Abe to get coherent enough to eat.
I made Abe's float first. As he began to eat, he looked up with a smile and said, "The ice ceems goin vight to my ear! It's makin me feel bettah!" We all had a good laugh and thanked God that he was back to normal. So, what did we learn from this whole thing?
- Accidents happen anywhere. Parents can't protect their children from everything even if we want to.
- Indian hospitals may not work the way we'd like or, even, how we feel is right, but they do treat patients and help them. They helped our son yesterday.
- When we can't be there to protect our kids, God is still there.
- He will look after them even when we can't and has a better plan for their lives than we do.
- We will make it here, one experience at a time.
o wow Emily! i can't imagine that fear for Abe & having to navigate the hospital there. of course i can fully visualize it so i'm proud of you guys staying calm & knowing God was there through it all. tell abe we're all glad he's ok & we miss you all!
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