Lest we forget

Yesterday Patrick and I went to Childrens Specialized Hospital to have new ankle braces made. Normally we run into very few patients and most of the time it is a toddler which we all would consider "normal" in need of speech or occupational therapy but yesterday was different. We arrived for our 1pm appointment and could not get in the fitting room because a young man was being fitted for a body cast. We waited and paced the halls and then I sat Patrick in a chair and went and sat on the other side of the room just observing. At this point four other families arrived. All four children were boys in reclined wheelchairs with an assortment of issues including trach tubes etc. but all were reclined and could not sit up. As usual when any of them cried Patrick laughed much to my dismay; I am always afraid he will upset a parent. But then I noticed him visually following people walking down the hall, following the voices, craning his neck to see where each person was going. And then it hit me. I was the parent years ago with the little boy in the reclined wheelchair that screamed in agony if he was upright. When Patrick was 3 1/2 years old we stormed out of Beth Isreal Hospital with a feeding tube in our son frustrated and angry and ready to turn anywhere but to more modern medicine. Thank god this happen for Patrick and our family. Driving home from the hospital it sank in that thank god we had the will, the desire, and the education to take matters into our own hands and stop listening to traditional doctors. We went to a holistic clinic for nutritional advice and started hyperbaric oxygen treatments. With each set of treatments his vision improved and he started eating again. With rigorous painful therapies he was able to finally hold his head up and eventually sit and eventually walk with assistance. Our latest endeavor for stem cells has only made his progress more sucessful. He has become incredibly strong, healthy, happy, and aware. He is making direct eye contact, recognizing people he sees rarely both vocally and visually, picking out a toy or game he wants to play with and demonstrating he wants you to play, and is very vocal. While driving home it saddened me that so many parents & children like the ones we had just seen will never know the opportunities that are out there and that their little boy could get out of that reclined wheelchair with the proper therapies. So today I am happy that I was reminded where we were and where we are now. Patrick has blossomed more than anyone would have imagined.