Sick Kid Takes Precedence

Sleep deprivation has never bothered me less. Current events and other life annoyances that would normally send me into a ranting frenzy (items include my recent poker slump; idiotic unsafe drivers and a near road-rage incident of mine on Friday night - I believe I made a man crap his pants; the ridiculous costs of being in someone's wedding - especially for women; the unrelenting deluge of Barbaro coverage, etc.) have had to be back-burnered since late Sunday night. The Man Zachary has been a sick little guy, and it has been affecting me in ways I never thought possible.

Zachary has some sort of gonnecoculous nightmare that got into his chest sometime Sunday. Whatever he caught, it makes him hoarse - to the point that he can't cry or make his usual noises. His cough is pretty rough, and you can tell that it hurts him. He is having a tough time getting his breath, which in turn has caused him to really struggle at night. Sunday night and Monday night were rough, as he did not sleep for longer than an hour. Yesterday, whatever he has seems to have spread to his eye, as he woke up from his nap with his left eye swollen shut. Needless to say, Kim and I are pretty worried, and sleep deprived. This morning he was making horrid gagging noises as the congestion and build-up were overwhelming him. It was heartbreaking. I felt SO helpless. I just wanted to hold him and absorb his sickness into myself.

After his early-week doctor's appointment, it was determined Zachary has bronchiolitis (or infant asthma). The eye issues are from his 4th set of double ear infections. The doctor said on Monday that his ears looked perfect, but it does not take long for the ear infections to develop. He seems to be a lot better this morning (Friday), and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that some salt air this weekend will do him some good.

All of this has made me spend a lot of tiem thinking about parents and families with REALLY sick children. If The Man being sick has me tied up in knots like this, what about the people who have lost children to illness or accidents? I met a very nice neighbor of ours in the last few weeks. His name is Don. Don is married and has two daughters. A little over a week ago, Don's daughters (one college aged, one a 5th grader) were hit head-on somewhere near our development. The younger daughter has been in intensive care, undergoing multiple surgeries with some organs having to be removed. I have no idea how I would handle something like this. I am a strong person, but I could totally see myself crumbling if anything ever happened to my little guy.

[Currently Listening: T'Pau - "Heart and Soul"]