The little girl stepped onto the broken piece of tile and fell through into the hole in the swimming pool. The little girl's mom was standing right next to her and knew it was serious, she picked her up and pulled the two sides of the leg together. The friends ran to get a shirt and a first aid kit to fashion a tourniquet to keep the bleeding reduced while they traveled towards LaDigue.
The cut was in two places, one small and jagged, one large and gaping. The little girl was so scared at first. Then she calmed way down and was even happy while Jamie and Sharon and Britt boiled tools and got everything sterile and ready.
That was the calm before the storm. When it came time to start and put the HUGE lidocane needle in to numb up the leg, the little 34 pound girl just about knocked three adults off of her trying to get away. She screamed bloody murder while some of us cried and some of us pinned her down. She was working so hard to get away she had sweat rolling off her upper lip and nose. It was one of the saddest things I had ever seen.
She said "Sharon, please get off of me. Please don't hold me down. Then she said to her Dad, "Daddy, please, I need a break I don't want this, I want it to be done. Not soon, now daddy. When that didn't work she said, "Britty, why are you doing this? Stop Britty."
It was horrible. Finally after the first hour of fighting she fell asleep for a bit. For two ++ hours Jamie stitched while Britt and Sharon assisted and the mom and dad cried and sang and talked to their little girl. It took about 150 very tense minutes to complete the job. When it was over we were all soaked in sweat and exhausted.
Hope is the strongest 4.75 year old in the Caribbean. We're sure of it. Not only that, but since everything is a competition in this family, she would like it to be noted that 32 stitches crushes all suturing records in the greater LaDigue area. No one else is even close.
The entire family had their bets on Jack-Jack or Ike when it came to the first "all in the family" suturing event. But Hope had other plans, and no one even had their money on her.
Let us just say this - God is good. God provides. Britt has the talent and even experience enough to have done much of this job, but not on her little screaming, pleading, baby sister. Not with the inside stitches that were necessary. It was hard enough being the one assisting the Doc.
Thank you GOD for having Jamie and Sharon here. Thank you a thousand times Jamie and Sharon!! Once it was done, and the adrenaline wore off - even grown men were crying. I know that it was hard for Jamie to do that to his God-child. Thanks to the few of you I emailed --- for praying.
Oh, and somebody call OSHA to report this unsafe hotel to the proper authorties. ;-)
Friday morning at 9am we (T & T) are meeting with Hopie and the baby's birthmother. Please pray for clear communication and a good meeting. Thank you for prayers for Hope too, that she will heal quickly and with minimal pain.
Have a good Friday.
