|
Written by Will Bynum
|
|
Sunday, 06 April 2008 |
|
The patient was a one-year-old girl who submerged her hand into a pot of boiling water two weeks ago. At some point in the last week, the circulation to her hand completely ceased and the surgery she would need was the amputation of her fingers and most of her hand.
As she clutched my finger and gazed into my eyes, I began to think about how much the impending amputation would change this child’s life, and how unfair it seemed that such an innocent child should have to endure so much before her second birthday.
A few days after the amputation of her left hand, the look in this child’s eyes betrayed her inner turmoil: she was too young to understand the gravity of her situation, yet old enough to know that her life would never be the same. The sadness seeded deep in these beautiful eyes reflects a life permanently changed by the neglectful and harsh environment into which she was born.
|
