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No smiles at our Thanksgiving table this yearNov 26 '00 Write an essay on this topic.This Thanksgiving was a very difficult time for me and my family. Usually the house is full of happy, screaming children and talkative adults. But even though we were all together, there was one person missing. Recently, my niece had a baby. He was born 2½ months early. The doctors tried to stop the baby from being born, but nothing they did could stop it. He was so early that he didn`t even have a name. Though his little lungs were underdeveloped, he held on with the strength of a mighty fighter. After being told he wouldn`t survive the night, we all had hope the next morning when he opened his eyes. A few days later, they discovered that his heart had a faulty valve. Instead of opening and closing like it should, it would not close back enough to keep the blood from flowing back in. They also found a leaking vessel. His heart was filling with blood. On the 7th day, he went into cardiac arrest. The doctors fought hard to bring him back, which they did. He had been without oxygen so long, they were afraid of brain damage. They did a brain scan and discovered there were no brain waves. There was nothing left to do but to end the suffering. That night, my niece and her husband held their baby for the first time. They cuddled him, sang to him, kissed him and told him over and over how much they loved him. He died peacefully in their arms. He was 8 days old. This Thanksgiving we all got together as usual. We cooked the turkey and fixed all the trimmings. We tried to be as normal as possible, but we just couldn`t. Being a mother of two boys, I can not even start to think how it must feel to lose a child. Whether it be after many years, or a few short days. My heart goes out to anyone who has lost a little one. We will lay to rest our Little TJ this week. And even though right now we don`t feel very thankful, we are grateful for the precious few moments we had with this little miracle that drifted briefly into our lives. Let not a single day go by without telling your children how much you love them. Show them how much you care, even if its just a hug or a smile. Never take for granted that there will always be a tomorrow.  |
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