What do you say...

...to one of the people who is responsible for saving your baby's life? I firmly believe that had Noah been born at the big, important NICU he was transfered to he wouldn't be alive today. What Noah's birth hospital lacked in pediatric specialists they more than made up for with dedicated, caring staff and the best in developmental care. Going to the NICU reunion last year was hard. What do you say to the nurses who fought by your side willing your son to live? What do you say to the neonatologists who sat by your child's bedside waiting for the inevitable, hoping that statistics would overlook one little boy?
Last night at church was the choir Christmas concert. Brian was singing and I was listening while Noah was happily playing in the nursery. After the concert I had Noah on my hip while talking to a friend. From behind me I hear "Noah? Is it really Noah?!" and turn around to find a familiar face - one of the NICU respiratory therapists, who's in-laws apparently attend my church. He was so excited to see Noah. He said that they still talk about him, which I knew since some of the nurses keep in touch. Our ped. lives next door to one of Noah's former primaries and I've given him permission to keep her updated on Noah's progress. This respiratory therapist wasn't Noah's main one, but he was around enough to get to know us well. He's a rather large man and I recall marvelling at how gentle he was with my tiny baby. Noh developed some pretty significant issues with tough the first time he went into septic shock and everyone walked on tiptoes around him. The respiratory therapists would hold Noah's hand and sing or talk* to him to keep his sats up while the nurse got a blood gas. When I saw this man I wanted to tell him how fondly I remember his part in the NICU. I wanted to thank him for his part in saving my son's life, because I know that it was the little things they did that kept him alive to keep fighting. When it came down to it, it was Noah that continued to fight when there was no medical reason left for him to be alive. But he wouldn't have had that chance if it weren't for the faithful, caring staff at that first NICU.

*Although this was likely around the time when his ears were damaged by the Gentamycin (his levels were way too high due to renal failure), he continued to respond to sound until about a month after this.