Tuesday 9 April 2013

Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

H is for Heroes.

Of course when I say heroes most people will be thinking superheroes like Superman or Batman or even maybe The Incredible Hulk then as you analyse the term more deeply you might think about our Soldiers out there fighting for our country, or doctors who save lives every minute of the day, policemen, firemen, maybe even teachers who inspire our next generation. Well with this blog I'd like you all to take a moment and think about what a hero is to you. Who is your hero?

Just over a year ago my mum was taken into hospital after losing a lot of blood. She has a rather serious heart condition and so doctors and hospitals had been putting her off having a hysterectomy because her heart could not take the anaesthetic and she would more that definitely die on the table if they tried. We couldn't even pay privately for help! Then, as I was saying, she got taken in on a Sunday evening and they pumped her with blood as was routine. I went to work the next day and got the call that no child ever, ever wants. Next of kin were being called in. I arrived at the hospital to find a very, very quiet Dad and a rather grey and beaten looking Mum, my brother was racing back from college and arrived just in time for the surgeon to explain what was to happen. Without emergency surgery my Mum would be dead within 10-12 hours. With it, if she survived the anaesthetic, she stood a 30-40% optimistic chance of survival. She had the surgery and then began the longest wait of my entire life. You put your trust in strangers. Not just the strangers there that you have at least seen the faces of: the nurses, the matron, her anaesthetists, her surgeons, the side kicks, the porters but you put your faith in the drugs companies, in the teachers of her surgeons and their team, you put it in fate. You pray for a hero.

It was touch and go for a long while afterwards and their were complications but my mum got through it, the nurses, the surgeon, the porters and everyone else I mentioned worked and got her and us through it. To me they are all heroes! I think we all to often dismiss how brilliant people are with excuses like 'Well it's there job,' and 'they do things like this all the time!' Does that make these things any less of achievements. If a fireman rescued 1 person every day does that make today's save any less brilliant that yesterday's? I think not.

The point of my blog....I am sorry I went off track slightly....the point is that the medical team and everyone who showed up for work that day are heroes to me. Today as much as any other day they are still heroes. My mum is a hero for raising my brother and I, for working as hard as she does, for being her. Take a minute today and say thank you to one of your hero's because I know that you meet heroes everyday, we just don't look for them but they are there hiding in plain sight. Maybe it's the person who brings you a morning coffee at Starbucks? Maybe it's a priest who guides you? Maybe it's a friend who never fails to make you laugh when you want to cry. They're all heroes!

So smile and be proud because if we use logic that would mean that you're someone's hero too and that makes you really rather great!

5 comments:

  1. This happened last year and I hope it's not too cheesy for this A-Z challenge but I am trying to give a bit of myself to it everyday and this was a scary day in my life but it did make me recognise those Heroes which I am grateful for xxxx

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  2. People who help other people are heroes. Kudos to the ones who helped your mom.

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  3. Brilliant! Love the perspective of who a real hero is... great job!

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  4. I really like this bloglet, not that I haven't enjoyed your previous ones, but I love the way you found something positive to come out of a really scary time x

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  5. This is a magnificent and touching post. So glad your mum made it through okay.

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