La razón del estar

Primero que nada una gran disculpa por haber tardado tanto en escribir y subir esta nueva entrada. El tiempo aquí pasa volando y con él, los amigos, las salidas y los pacientes. La historia de hoy es sobre un pequeño con el que pase mucho tiempo y que ahora,  gracias a los cientos de personas involucradas, tiene la oportunidad de una vida mejor.

George fue el paciente que me asignaron en el programa Befriend-a-Patient. Desde el primer momento su sonrisa y ligereza de ánimo me encantaron, George es un niño muy activo que, aún con sus piernas en tracción, preparándose para su cirugía conseguía enroscarse para jugar con los globos voladores.
George tenía un problema con su cadera, su fémur izquierdo no estaba dentro de su cresta iliaca, por lo que tenía una  cojera notable y de haber crecido con este problema no hubiera podido llevar a cabo  trabajo pesado durante su vida. La tracción en sus piernas era para facilitar el reacomodo de su fémur durante la cirugía.

Dos días antes de su cirugía le quitaron la tracción y caminó de nuevo. El primero de esos días lo lleve al piso 7, desde donde podemos ver el mar. Estaba lloviendo y pudimos sentir la lluvia en nuestras manos, también vimos varios botes y jugamos con un triciclo. No se imaginan la felicidad del chiquillo al poder salir un poco de ese cuarto de hospital y caminar de arriba  abajo.
Para mi gran suerte, me fue posible observar su cirugía, la cual fue larga y laboriosa, pero, al final, exitosa. George regreso a su cuarto de hospital enyesado de cadera a pies, pero con una nueva vida futura.

Estuve con él los días después de su cirugía y después de un tiempo finalmente le retiraron el yeso y pudo regresar a su casa.

Cómo él hay miles de historias cada día, de lunes a domingo los doctores cambian caras, piernas, ojos, pero sobre todo, vidas.

Y al final de los días extenuantes o frustrantes o en los que extrañas a los que se fueron y podrías nunca volver a ver; es lo que hace que todo, cada instante, valga la pena.

---

First of all, I apologize for taking so long to write again. Time flies by and with it, friends, nights out, and patients. Today’s story is about a boy with whom I spent a lot of time and who, now, thanks to the work of hundreds of people, has the opportunity for a better life.

George was the patient assigned to me in the program Befriend-a-Patient. From the first moment I loved his smile and easy-going character, George is a very active boy who, even whilst being in traction, getting ready for his surgery, would manage to turn around and play with the flying balloons.

George had a problem with his hips, his left femur was not inside his hip bone, because of that he limped a lot and if he had grown up with this problem he would not have been able to do hard labor during his life. The traction on his legs was meant to make it easier to put his femur back in place during the surgery.

Two days before his surgery he was taken of his traction and was able to walk again. During those days I took him up to deck 7, where we can see the sea. It was raining and we were able to feel the rain in our hands, we also saw many boats and rode a tricycle. You cannot imagine the happiness of the small kid at being able to gat away from that hospital room and walk up and down.

 I was able to observe his surgery, which was long and hard, but, at the end, successful. George went back to his hospital room with a cast from waist down, but with a new hope for the future.

I went to visit him during the days that followed his surgery and after a while they took his cast away and he was able to return home.

As his there are thousands of stories every day, from Monday to Friday the doctors change faces, legs, eyes, but mostly, lives.

And at the end of the tiring or frustrating days in which you miss those who are gone and you could never see again; that change is what makes, everything, every instant completely worth living.