Wednesday, July 08, 2009

A Very Different Kind of Blog Post - Noah's Surgery

My 18-year-old son, Noah, aka the Future Architect, is scheduled for open heart surgery tomorrow. It is to correct a congenital defect. I wanted to write something moving and forceful and reflect back on his first surgery when he was five months old, but I find I can't. Maybe when the fear has unclutched my heart I can be poetic and insightful and meaningful. Now I just dread the days to come until we come out the other side of this unavoidable life experience. The doctors, not unkindly, tell us replacing a pulmonary valve is routine. To them, of course, not us.

Noah has been brave, proud, scared and determined. I want to shout, scream and rant at the fates. But the fates that gave him holes in his heart and a constricted pulmonary artery (which lead to the enlarged right ventricle that prompts tomorrow's repair) also gave him more heart than anyone else I know. He is thoughtful, emphatic, caring, kind, full of community spirit and what we Jews call "ruach" which is difficult to define in English, but something like a caring spirit that suffuses all his actions. Not to say he can't be a know it all or thoughtless teenager, but those are just passing irritants with him, not his true soul.

There is a lot more I want to write about this experience and maybe I will.
But for now, thanks in advance for your kind prayers and good thoughts.
UPDATE: Noah's surgery on Thursday went well and he continues to improve. A big thank you to the doctors and nurses at Children's Hospital, Oakland.
UPDATE2: Noah came home Sunday. He is doing well.
UPDATE3 (8.24.09): We just dropped him off at college. He's still has a few weeks left of taking it easy, but he's doing great.

5 comments:

Genie said...

Holding you guys close in my thoughts this week, Faith.

Unknown said...

Dear Faith,

Noah will be in my thoughts. I know how busy you will be during this time..please keep posting so that we can all be there for you.

Pam

Shelly said...

Sending positive thoughts to you and yours. Refuah shlema!

FJKramer said...

Thank you all.
If you want to follow what is going on more closely -- we have set up a caringbridge site:

www.caringbridge.org/visit/noahsurgery

Caleb said...
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