A Loving Mother

Chris Souza

September 17, 2005

EN101

A LOVING MOTHER

Ever since I was little I always wondered to myself why my mother was always home, when all of my friends at school were going home to a house with a babysitter. I would come home and my mother would always be there, I liked it. It made me feel loved in a way that I can not explain. My mom would be able to help me on my homework, and bring me to football practice and piano lessons.

When I got a little bit older I started to ask my self questions and get really deep into thought. Some of the questions were, "What would of happened if my mom wasn't home during the day I had a diabetic attack, and was diagnosed with diabetes?" you see, my mother was home with me when I did have an attack. Fortunately, she got me to the hospital before I did pass away from the near fatal attack. I was in a comma for one full day, and the first person I saw was my mother. I was so relieved to see her face because I knew that everything was ok. At first I did not know where I was, but as the day went on and test after test the diagnosis got worse. I was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes which affects many young children from the ages 1 month to 20 years. My mother and father were there with me the whole day and for the full week I was in the hospital. The doctors decided to move me to the Joslin diabetes center in Boston, Massachusetts. I was told by the main doctor at Tobey hospital that I was going to have to stay in Boston for the next few weeks. I was only 6 at the time, so I did not know what to think. At first I thought I was to go alone, and spend the week 100 miles away from home with people I did not know, and did not want to get to know. My mother was not going to let me go alone and she came with me and spent every waking moment by my side at the center.

Now, back then we were in a lot of money trouble. My father had his own business, which he was trying to start up. We weren't bringing in much money and were just paying bills. Me being diagnosed with diabetes did not help with the money issues. My mother has her degree in Nursing, and could very much go back and get a job as a RN, but she would rather have been with her child have than to leave him alone with strangers in a Diabetes clinic. No matter how much I cried for my father to stay with us in Boston, he could not do it, he had to work.

My mother and I had a blast in this clinic, meeting other children with diabetes, learning a new diet, learning how to take insulin injections, and just trying to cope with my new disease that would be in my life for years to come.

After I had stayed for a while, and the doctors had done every test on me known to the field of medicine, I was released to go home and have fun with my friends and start school again.

The hardest thing to do when I got home was to explain to people when I had to eat a snack during class and no one else could. I got to leave class when no one else could leave. It was hard to explain this to them, not knowing that years from now I would realize that is was totally ridiculous that I lost friendships over me being able to leave and eat when I needed. I was considered an outcast in my class you could say, and I did not have many friends.

Now, 6 months after I was diagnosed, my second brother, Jeffrey was born, and my mother still would stay home instead of getting a job and just relying on a babysitter. She would stay home to bring up my brother and I, she would help me with my homework, and bring me to soccer,