My Hero

At 8:30 in the morning of the next day, I called the doctor's office. The office was not open yet. I wanted my son's arm to be fixed already. Something had to be done because I could not tolerate the thought of broken bones.

I fed Joey breakfast, changed his ice pack, and gave him his medicine while waiting. At 9:15 A.M. I called again, explained the situation, and was told to come in right away.

We got to Dr. Shoch's office, filled out another pile of paper, and waited. The doctor looked over the X-Ray, and said that Joey needed a long cast for his arm. He presented two options: Joey could choose to take the 10-second pain, or went to the OR (operation room) to get knock out for him to fix the bones.

I was hesitated. I told the doctor I didn't know what to do or which way to decide. Dr. Shoch turned to Joey and went over the options in details. Joey picked the 10-second pain!

The nurse came in and prepared Joey's arm for the cast! I stood up against the wall with my cell phone camera in the ready mode.


After the first layer of the cast got put on, Dr Shoch came back, and started to mold the bones back together. I climbed the wall at this point when Joey grunted.


Thank God for my cell phone camera! It occupied my thoughts and feelings. I just aimed and captured the moment without making any noises.


The whole process was over in 10 seconds. I looked at Joey and amazed at his bravery and courage. This kid could tolerate pain!

The nurse put the second layer of the cast on his arm, and we waited for it to dry. Then she took him for another X-Ray to make sure the bones were straightened out.


Everything went smoothly after the X-Ray, and my little hero was fine. What a relief it was for me to know that Joey's arm was protected!


Through this, I learned that children are much better at handling the situation than we gave them credits.

My Brave Little Boy

On April 29, I took my son to his soccer game, but was quickly rushed back to the car to take him to the hospital. As I draped myself in a heavy blanket since it was cold, his coach walked my son over and repeatedly saying: "Joey has to go to the hospital." The coach went on: "He fell and a heavy kid landed on him. His arm doesn't look right!"

I just saw a big black cloud over my head as I stood up to collect my things. A friend helped me carried the folding chair, picked up the water bottles, and we all walked back to the parking lot.



My mind raced with different thoughts, but it was set on where is the closest facility around to take my son to. I didn't even have a chance to see my son's injury. I just knew that I must get to the doctor safely. The whole time, Joey was very brave. He didn't cry, just an occasional moan and groan.

Once we got to St. John, signed in and waited, I finally look at his right arm where he used the left hand to hold it up, that was when I actually saw the dent on his forearm. I was sitting on fire, but remain composed since I didn't want Joey to freak out either.



We were in the hospital for over four hours, and were sent home with the X-Ray of his broken bones to take to the Orthopedic the next day. They just put a splint on his arm, and gave me a prescription of Tylenol with codeine for his pain until the morning.



That night, I had him sleeping in the recliner to restrain his movement, and I slept on the couch next to my son. The nightmare hit me as I heard Joey's grunting in discomfort. I set the alarm to wake up every three hours to change the ice pack, and to give him his medicine.

Having three children all played soccer, Joey was the first that got hurt. I talk to him about learning to use his left hand for a while, and still thank God for keeping him from serious harm.



Joey is quite a strong, brave, and an incredible kid. Through this 9 year-old boy, I draw my strength to do what I have to.