Recently I spoke with someone who had written a letter to their baby prior to going into surgery. I thought that was a great idea, but since I am a poet it is actually easier for me to put my feelings into the form of a poem. I did this last night.
Visualizing Wholeness
I ride the fragile pauses
between deep breaths
into a place
where worry fails
allowing me impossible glimpses
that stretch high above
my heavy realty.
On this magic-carpet ride
I touch your lip
and it draws together
whole, as it was
in my first dream of you.
And I transfer your burden
onto my own face
as any mother would.
The whisper of this vision
must carry me through
until suddenly, I am strong.
Even after the surgeon
works his magic,
even after you wake
in astonished pain
until you smile again
a new smile
and we fly towards wholeness
together.
by Jacqueline Dooley
Dr. Grayson ended up attaching the Stents with the nasal bridge that I’d been dreading so you can’t see her columella when the NAM is in. It makes it more difficult to tape her prolabium too, but we’re getting the hang of it. I’ve already seen an improvement in the direction of the tip of her nose. It no longer points up as much. I wish we’d had the bridge on earlier now. Only 2.5 weeks left before surgery. Ack! Here’s a shot of Emily with the nasal bridge. It sort of looks like a wad of gum just underneath the tip of her nose. She doesn’t seem to mind that it’s there.
