When we arrived at the hospital, the doctors and I were hoping I could deliver naturally. They took an x-ray, since my daughter had been breech, and said the baby was positioned head down so everything should go smoothly. I noticed wavy lines going across the x-ray. I didn�t know what they were, but I thought if they were important the doctors would say something about them.
Finally, after 12 hours of labor the doctor said they would have to do a C-section. He asked if I wanted to be asleep. I said, �Definitely!� They wheeled me into the operating room and started to strap my arms down,
I started to panic, �Why am I still awake!�
I heard someone behind me reply, �You won�t be for long.�
The next thing I remember, is waking up to the antiseptic smell of the hospital 14 hours later and instantly remembering where I was. A nurse walked into my room, and I asked her if I could see my baby. She hesitated, and then stated I would have to call the nursery. I thought their policy must have changed since I had my daughter. She handed me a Polaroid picture and said that the nurses in the nursery had taken it for me. Looking at the picture, I failed to notice the oxygen and wires hooked up to him. I didn�t notice that his lips were almost black or that he was lying there as limp as a rag doll. All I noticed was my beautiful baby boy. His eyes were open; they were so dark I could barely tell that they were blue. He had a shadow of fuzz on his head. I wanted to hold him, but reaching for the phone with arms of lead was more than I was up for. I fell back to sleep, exhausted.
I woke up at 7:00 a.m. the next morning, and immediately reached for the phone to call the nursery. I looked at my son�s picture as I spoke with a nurse.
I asked, �Can you bring my son down to me?� Totally relaxed, I still didn�t realize that my son was sick.
�What is his name?� she inquired abruptly.
�Tim Keller,� I answered, feeling irritated.
Impatiently she asked, �What is your name?�
�Rose Gephart,� I answered, feeling foolish. I knew they put the last name of the mother on the baby for identification purposes.
�Oh,� she fell silent for a moment. � Um, he�s not able to leave the nursery. There were complications in delivery, and um, he needed to be put on oxygen. It�s only 2%. It�s almost like the air you and I are breathing. He just needed a little more oxygen. It�s only 2%.�
I couldn�t figure out why she sounded so flustered. Why did she keep mentioning that it was only 2%? What was the big deal about him being on oxygen?
�Oh, okay. Can I come down to see him?� If he couldn�t come to me, I would go to him.
�Um, yes,� She replied reluctantly.
Just then my mom came in on her way to work.
She seemed worried, �Have you seen Tim yet?�
It surprised me, �No, They gave me a picture of him. Isn�t it sweet,� I said, as I handed her the picture. �Why is there something wrong?�
