In Emergency Room with Child

Yesterday I was stressed out about work deadlines and dirty laundry and the state of the grass in my backyard.  Yesterday I was worried about the few extra pounds around my middle and the cost of a new dishwasher.  Yesterday I was mad at my husband for falling asleep in front of the television instead of coming upstairs to bed.

But today one of the kids woke up sick… trip-to-emergency sick… scary-tests-and-too-much-waiting-and-not-enough-pain-meds sick.  Today I don’t care about anything except test results and finding warm blankets to keep him from shaking.  Today I don’t feel hungry or thirsty or sleepy. I am all-powerful and powerless at the same time. And even though the test results are looking good and the pain meds are working, I can’t find deep breaths. Relief is something I will feel tomorrow.

Today I am just a woman in a room with a sick kid. There is nothing else.