At four years old Daniel, his brother William and I were playing on the floor when William took his first steps. Penny and I were overjoyed with excitement, as you are when your kids take their first steps.
What we weren’t prepared for was Daniel’s reaction. Later that evening, as I was watching TV with Daniel nestled closely at my side, he turned to me and said, Why can’t I walk like William?
I am writing this blog while sitting in my lounge room watching over Daniel as he slowly recovers from a head cold. I don’t want to be too far away in case he needs me to wipe his nose or catch vomit, needs a drink or to go to the toilet, etc.
The rest of us recovered from our colds in a day or two, however Penny and I fear when Daniel falls ill as it generally impacts on him 2.5 times worse than us.
When they were young Daniel and William always took a bath together. It was something any young family would do with young children. The fact that Daniel had CP really was not a consideration as either my wife or I would be within arms reach of Daniel.
After a couple of years I became complacent with the routine of bathing and the relative safety the situation provided based upon the fact that nothing had happened so far.
I Love You Dad
It was 2 am. I was standing outside the waiting room hoping for some news on my wife and child when the doctors and theatre nurses hurried out of the operating theatre, pushing the mobile humidicrib in front of them.
On their way to the intensive care unit the only thing the doctor said to me was, If you want to see your son, you’ll have to run with us …
Rodney Clarke Welcome to the Hey Dad blog … my name is Rodney Clarke and I suppose I qualify for the Hey Dad blog page for one major reason … I'm a dad! More about me…
