Afraid but strong, choosing light over darknesss
Originally Published: http://www.riverheadlocal.com/2014/10/12/afraid-strong-choosing-light-darknesss/ As I lay on the cot in the dark room, the quiet drone of the IV pump and the hissing sounds of oxygen played in my subconscious like an old familiar song. Hours before, I was dressed in a paper suit and face mask preparing to go to the operating room. I was covered from head to toe as I accompanied my daughter, Johanna into the operating room for her ninety-first surgery. This was an all-too-familiar experience, one that parents pray they never need, that has become a frequent part of my life over the past eighteen years. I did what I always do; I helped her onto the gurney as we joked with the nurses and anesthesiologists in the bright, cold operating room. I understand the lights and the sterile environment, but I keep forgetting to ask why the operating room is so very cold. The [...]