They Took off the Bandages, and I Was Not Prepared

IMG_0384

Two weeks post surgery, we went back to Children’s Hospital for our follow-up appointment.  They cut through all the layers of cotton that had been holding him together, which looked an awful lot like shearing a sheep. IMG_0372(Or what I’ve seen of sheep shearing, which was probably on Sesame Street.)

I thought I was prepared for the sight of those incisions and rods sticking out of his foot.  I wasn’t.

I think I was picturing some sewing pins tucked neatly into his skin with a little round plastic ball on the end of each one.  Good grief… these are not they.  These rods sticking out the top of his foot are like coat hangers, and they are even bent with little handles for taking them out later. It’s so Frankensteinian.

I took pictures at Tucker’s request.  I will not post them here because it’s one of those images you can’t un-see.  The whole thing makes me nauseous. Tuck took a picture of me in the process, and in the retellings, he says, “And there’s my mom. That’s her nervous face.”

I’m pretty sure I must have turned several shades of white, and I must have looked pretty woozy because in addition to monitoring Tucker’s own response to his very own foot, they kept saying, “You okay, Mom?  You okay?”  Not especially, no.  But I stayed seated and I didn’t faint, which is a sizable victory because I’m prone to such weaknesses when my kid is on the table.

They gave him ‘the next cast’ in this process.  Most kids get two colors at most, but leave it to my son to charm them into giving him three.  He has Broncos colors with a nice white stripe that glows in the dark.

I gave him a bumper sticker across his calf to show off wherever he scoots around town.IMG_0386

Because a mom should get to sign however she wants.

Tricia Lott Williford

Comments are closed

  1. Hi
    My nearly blind 93 year old mother fell down the stairs and broke both wrists in several places. After surgery she had these metal pins projecting out from both sides of both wrists with the idea that after about 6 weeks they would be removed. I about fainted also and had difficult looking at them but I needed to clean around them every day to keep her from getting an infection. I got used to it. So will you. It is that first presentation that is the hardest. The mind just is not ready for it.

You Are Safe Now

Available April 9, 2024

This Book Is for You

Now Available
A book about falling in love with the Bible

Just. You. Wait.

Now Available
#1 New Title on Amazon in Christian Inspiration

You Can Do This

Now Available
#1 New Title on Amazon in Women's Issues!

Let's Pretend We're Normal

Now Available
#1 Bestseller on Amazon in Single Parenting

And Life Comes Back

Now Available
#1 in Denver Post: Nonfiction Paperback and Finalist for 2015 Christian Book Award
© 2015-2024 Tricia Lott Williford. All Rights Reserved. Site by Concept To Web.