Little Miss Sadie had two cavities filled a few weeks ago and as a result of the procedure she found her cheek and lip were completely numb. Sadie performed marvelously for the Dentist and was awarded with stickers for her bravery. Sadie and I walked from the Dentist to Maceys (her older sister was still in the chair) to buy ice cream and root beer for a later job well done treat. Once home, Sadie merrily marched off to watch SpongeBob with her only aggravation stemming from an unconstitutional decision not to have root beer floats before dinner. A short time later Sadie and I entered the kitchen from opposite sides. Like Clint Eastwood in The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, dueling music rang in the background as we faced for battle. Being an astute parent I immediately noticed what appeared to be ketchup all over her face, hands, and shirt. I quickly decided on a proper chastisement when my rational brain screamed the reality of the situation. It seemed Sadie could not feel her lip and so she began to chew in order to pass the time while watching cartoons. When she was done she had chewed a gouge approximately an inch long and a ¼ inch deep. The top portion of her lip was missing to reveal the muscle underneath. My instincts kicked in, honed by years of handling such tragedies, and I frantically tried to hide this reality from Steph. I failed. Mom saw what happened and reacted as any self respecting mother would. Her jaw dropped and she burst into tears. Steph quickly raised her hands to her mouth in an effort to hide her shocked reaction. Tender hearted Sadie simply apologized for a situation she surmised was her fault. I quickly wiped the blood from Sadie’s face and hands and asked her to hold a cloth to her lip. I was trying to give mom some time to gather her composure. I removed the cloth hoping to find my memory had exaggerated the injury. I was wrong. Mom lost it again. I took command and announced I would save my darling wife further trauma and whisk Sadie away for professional help by myself. I was wrong again. Mom sternly advised me of my error in thinking and announced she would be going. After a somber car ride to the InstaCare Sadie was quickly surrounded by secretaries, nurses, and physicians. Apparently the magnitude of the wound was not as common as I was trying to make myself believe. The attending physician consulted a plastic surgeon. We were given a choice do nothing and hope for the best or attempt to stitch the wound edges closer. We were told that facial injuries, especially the mouth, heal quickly and less is usually more. The standing opinion suggested closing the wound with too many stitches would likely cause abnormal healing. Because young Sadie had exposed a potion of the facial muscle we opted for a few internal stitches. Sadie was still numb so the job was completed quickly without a local. Sadie took the stitches like a Marine in triage. Mom was trying to keep herself together. The nurses focused most concern for Steph as they kept asking how she felt and if she was going to make it. In an effort to relive internal maternal stress I asked the nurse to bandage the wound. I was politely told modern day science has not developed a Band-Aid that will stick to the interior of the mouth. Used to getting my way in times of stress and tragedy, I responded with “Surely you can slap some tape on that sucker”. I was wrong aga
in. Time progressed and Sadie had ice-cream for dinner that night. The next
morning Sadie woke with her lip swollen. She had ice-cream for breakfast. The tremendous crevasse was gone. We kept it moist with balms and Chap Stick and within two week her lip had healed almost perfectly. As a result of this I am reminded of several truths. The human body is both fragile and resilient, a mother feels pain along with her child, I dont always get what I want, and in the eyes of my darling wife I am wrong more than I am right.
Little Miss Sadie had two cavities filled a few weeks ago and as a result of the procedure she found her cheek and lip were completely numb. Sadie performed marvelously for the Dentist and was awarded with stickers for her bravery. Sadie and I walked from the Dentist to Maceys (her older sister was still in the chair) to buy ice cream and root beer for a later job well done treat. Once home, Sadie merrily marched off to watch SpongeBob with her only aggravation stemming from an unconstitutional decision not to have root beer floats before dinner. A short time later Sadie and I entered the kitchen from opposite sides. Like Clint Eastwood in The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, dueling music rang in the background as we faced for battle. Being an astute parent I immediately noticed what appeared to be ketchup all over her face, hands, and shirt. I quickly decided on a proper chastisement when my rational brain screamed the reality of the situation. It seemed Sadie could not feel her lip and so she began to chew in order to pass the time while watching cartoons. When she was done she had chewed a gouge approximately an inch long and a ¼ inch deep. The top portion of her lip was missing to reveal the muscle underneath. My instincts kicked in, honed by years of handling such tragedies, and I frantically tried to hide this reality from Steph. I failed. Mom saw what happened and reacted as any self respecting mother would. Her jaw dropped and she burst into tears. Steph quickly raised her hands to her mouth in an effort to hide her shocked reaction. Tender hearted Sadie simply apologized for a situation she surmised was her fault. I quickly wiped the blood from Sadie’s face and hands and asked her to hold a cloth to her lip. I was trying to give mom some time to gather her composure. I removed the cloth hoping to find my memory had exaggerated the injury. I was wrong. Mom lost it again. I took command and announced I would save my darling wife further trauma and whisk Sadie away for professional help by myself. I was wrong again. Mom sternly advised me of my error in thinking and announced she would be going. After a somber car ride to the InstaCare Sadie was quickly surrounded by secretaries, nurses, and physicians. Apparently the magnitude of the wound was not as common as I was trying to make myself believe. The attending physician consulted a plastic surgeon. We were given a choice do nothing and hope for the best or attempt to stitch the wound edges closer. We were told that facial injuries, especially the mouth, heal quickly and less is usually more. The standing opinion suggested closing the wound with too many stitches would likely cause abnormal healing. Because young Sadie had exposed a potion of the facial muscle we opted for a few internal stitches. Sadie was still numb so the job was completed quickly without a local. Sadie took the stitches like a Marine in triage. Mom was trying to keep herself together. The nurses focused most concern for Steph as they kept asking how she felt and if she was going to make it. In an effort to relive internal maternal stress I asked the nurse to bandage the wound. I was politely told modern day science has not developed a Band-Aid that will stick to the interior of the mouth. Used to getting my way in times of stress and tragedy, I responded with “Surely you can slap some tape on that sucker”. I was wrong aga
in. Time progressed and Sadie had ice-cream for dinner that night. The next 
morning Sadie woke with her lip swollen. She had ice-cream for breakfast. The tremendous crevasse was gone. We kept it moist with balms and Chap Stick and within two week her lip had healed almost perfectly. As a result of this I am reminded of several truths. The human body is both fragile and resilient, a mother feels pain along with her child, I dont always get what I want, and in the eyes of my darling wife I am wrong more than I am right.
