Before you read this Blog I need to warn you, I tend to get a little dramatic when I write about this event in our family’s life. To my credit I think it should be expected that a mommy would be dramatic about a traumatic life changing injury happening to her oldest child. The truth is we do not live our lives thinking we would be the people on the evening news, or that our child would be taken to the hospital in a life flight helicopter.
It was December 6, 1992 and snow had covered the valley floor of Portland Oregon. For once in my life it was going to be a fun and well organized holiday season, I was done with everything a mother is responsible to accomplish! The only thing left was the fun stuff like making my great-grandmother’s fudge. Sean, my oldest son’s best friend also named Sean lived across the street and wanted to play video games. Life was peaceful, joyful and maybe going to be one of the best holidays ever.
The day was passing along and it was starting to get dark out, when our telephone rang. It was someone we didn’t know telling me that our son was in their living room, hurt and we needed to come get him. WHAT? As soon as I hung up the phone I heard sirens all over–lots of them. Sean’s father and I put on boots and coats and started to walk up the road where we were told we would find our 9 year old son. Sean’s father was ahead and Tori age 8 and I were trudging through what appeared to be re-frozen slush.
I could hear the sirens getting closer and I stopped and told Tori that if they passed us, we needed to pray for Sean, and we needed to pray he didn’t hurt his head. It wasn’t long before they passed us, and we stopped and cried and prayed.
By the time we could make it to the house where Sean was at, fire trucks, ambulances and Sean’s father were all there. When I got to the door I was taken to a room away from my son, and no permitted to see him at all! Not even a kiss or a peek. The Emergency people took us aside and told us Sean had been in a sledding accident, and that his injuries were life threatening. He would be taken by Life Flight helicopter to the trauma hospital and that we could meet them there.
We slid down the street back to our house, and found a way to get to the hospital during the middle of a Portland Oregon Ice Storm.
Related Blog:
- 5-Things To Know If Your Child Has To Fly To A Trauma Hospital
- Part 2, My Son’s Accident
- Life Flight Memberships