Wamena: Part 3. Injury and Gratitude

I sat on the porch chatting with a neighbor and enjoying the cool morning air when I spot Ben and Isaiah approaching from around the corner. Isaiah in Ben’s arms with his head buried against Ben’s chest. Oh no, he must have gotten hurt. And I’m up out of my chair to see the damage.

“It’s pretty bad.” Ben called out, still a little way off. “I didn’t see it happen, but he must have face planted really hard.” 

Our active boy is no stranger to accidents. New scraps and cuts, bruised legs, even teeth through lips and black eyes are nothing new. 

Isaiah turned to look at me and for the first time, I was scared by the amount of blood. The neighbor got up, “I’ll get the nurse” she said and quickly went to the adjacent house for help.

 

We brought Isaiah inside and I tried to clean away some of the blood with a tissue. There were two cuts, a U shaped deep cut on his chin and a smaller cut just under his bottom lip. He was bleeding inside his mouth as well and I prayed that his teeth were still intact.

 

The nurse arrived and although she was kind and tried her hardest to calm Isaiah, the trauma only increased. “It should have stitches, but at least it’s clean and not gaping.” She remarked and Isaiah went into a full blown panic attack as we tried to clean the wound. I worried he might actually vomit from the stress. One thing was clear, stitches would not be possible. Oh well, I thought, Better a deep scar than a traumatized child. I hope it heals well.

Fully recovered, let the fun continue!

Injuries in the US or the UK are difficult enough to experience. Here in Wamena with limited health care serious injuries are evacuated out by air plane to the Sentani and at times to Jakarta or even Singapore. Stroking my son’s hair and looking into his tear filled eyes I was filled with gratitude that the damage hadn’t been worse. His teeth were still intact, but the nurse warned they may become loose after the swelling goes down. The cuts were deep, but clean.

Later that day Isaiah slipped and his chin, swollen and bandaged, came only an inch from smashing into the tile floor. My heart stopped. My expat friend exclaimed, “Praise God! Wow that was close! Thank you Jesus!” Yes, I silently agreed in prayer, Thank you Lord. We would never make it without you.

 
Tomorrow: Part 4... "You are wanted here."