Perspective

I admit there were times during the last few weeks when I felt pretty sorry for myself, for Ruby, for our family in general. For Ruby's third surgery, we went to St. Luke's instead of St. Al's. I met an 8 year old girl that was battling cancer. I saw her in the playroom a lot, hooked up to oxygen, her pale bald head bent over her art work or games. I wanted to cry every time I saw her. I no longer felt sorry for myself. My Ruby was fixable-- she would be able to leave eventually. This girl, Raegen, had been in the hospital for 27 days straight and was staying another week for chemo treatments. I can't imagine facing something like that as a parent. I had a small taste of what it's like to see my child suffering, feeling helpless and confused, the endless hours of monotony at the hospital. That was nothing compared to what Raegen and her family have experienced. We may be dirt poor, we may be frustrated with our job situation, we may feel like our situation is never going to change, but at least we are healthy and our children are healthy and for that I am very grateful.