Bubblegum Fireworks
"Do it again!"
As far as bubblegum goes, Trident Strawberry is about as weak as one can get, but it was 4am, Janette had some in her purse, and Gabriel required amusement. I blew another brief bubble; Gabriel clapped and ah'd like he was watching a fireworks show.
An hour-and-a-half before, Gabriel had been crying, shaking scared, and whistling noisily with each breath. A sudden, croupy cough had woken Janette and I. After Albuterol and some cough medicine, we had withdrawn to the shower, but his breathing looked labored. We took him to the local ER.
By 3am, nurses had taken vitals, started some cool mist blowing by, and administered a steroid to open his lungs up further.
"Blow more bubbles. Please?"
By 4am, Gabriel had consumed some strawberry-flavored Dippin Dots a nurse brought in. His voice had returned. His breathing was normal. Gabriel, dark bags hanging beneath his eyes, was smiling and laughing.
I struggled with the two, tiny Trident pieces in my mouth. Months ago, Gabriel and I had worked on how to blow bubbles with gum. He had made some progress, but had to use his fingers to try to get everything in place. He was still fascinated with my "special ability." I managed to blow another small bubble.
"A big one! A big one!"
With some prompting, an x-ray technician arrived, and Janette (our best visual evaluator of all things medical) and Gabriel went to take pictures. Fifteen minutes later, they returned.
"The x-ray was fun! I think it made me all better. Can we go now?"
Janette and I explained that the doctor had to evaluate the x-ray, and that took awhile. Meanwhile, I had missed my opportunity to toss the gum while Gabriel was off at x-ray. I snapped and popped a bit more, killing time.
Forty-five minutes later, we were exiting the ER.
"That was so fun!" Gabriel beamed. "Maybe we can come back tomorrow."
-- Dad
