Rabies and Babies

   My brother, Chip was 9 and I was 11 the summer my mom went to work at the local bank. In those days we were plenty old enough to watch ourselves without a sitter. Mom would check in by phone every couple of hours.

   One day,  I heard a yelp followed by the kitchen screen door banging shut and Chip running up the stairs with blood squirting from his forearm. I ran him into the bathroom and had him hold it under cold running water while I called Mom, who said she’d be home right away. Meanwhile, good Girl Scout that I was, I applied a death grip tourniquet above the wound. Do not try this at home! It’s a miracle he didn’t lose his arm.

   Chip had been feeding his squirrel friends when one lunged and bit him. Needless to say, It did not bode well for the poor neighborhood squirrels that summer. They were trapped and tested for rabies.

   I remember walking Chip up to the doctor’s office every day for several days for his painful rabies shot in the stomach. He was so brave. The alternative would have been to wait and see if he got rabies, but then he might possibly die. The choice was clear.

   So…here I am making a wise and clear choice to surrender with all hope that I will be healed in the hands of a surgeon whom God has gifted with skill, wisdom, and compassion. God has promised to heal me this way. I have to trust in His promise. The hospital sent me a list of things I should pack for my stay - books, ipad, pajamas, shoes, phone cords, music. It kind of feels like I'm going to camp!

   See you on the other side of hip replacement surgery!