It happened on the third morning of basketball camp…just as
he was hitting his stride. It was the
day we walked in and the cool coach knew his name and greeted him. He was brimming with confidence and looking
forward to another day of playing hard and having fun. After dropping him off, I went home and
started cleaning the house. I believe I
was dusting the blinds when the phone rang and I heard those words that I knew
were not good, “Mrs. B, we have OBB here and you’re going to need to come
and get him”.
X-rays revealed that he had broken his elbow – the head of
the radial bone in his arm. After
providing a splint and a sling, we were back on our way. The next morning, we met with a Dr. to have
it casted. After looking over the
x-rays, the Dr. sent us to a surgeon to see about having it pinned.
“I’m not making you an appointment…I’ve called them and they are expecting
you.” More words you don’t want to
hear. Once the pediatric orthopedic
surgeon looked him over and took more x-rays, he determined that the break was
sitting on the dividing line between needing surgery and not needing surgery,
so the Dr. opted for three weeks in a cast and then a re-evaluation.
First, I feel for all the mommas who have little ones in
casts. It is hard to hug your baby when
they’re in a cast. You’re afraid of
hurting them, pinching their skin or causing them more pain – especially since
you know they’ve been through so much pain already.
And the attention the cast brings…oh my. OBB is pretty shy to begin with and this has
been a great opportunity for him to speak with adults. Funny enough, most of the attention that OBB
has received has been from “cool guys” in their 20s and 30s…some with tattoos
and some without…but all with an appreciation for well-drawn flames.
OBB has learned to do many tasks with one hand. Often he asks me for help or reminds me that
“Mom, I only have one hand”. He’s
definitely been innovative in his approaches to everyday tasks, finding ways to do most things (even buckling his seat belt) with one hand
.
We’re hopeful that the cast will come off next week and
everything will be fine…just in time for school to start.
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