Documenting Life--Even the Hard Stuff

In a conversation with Kendra, she mentioned how, especially with digital technology, there is a temptation to alter photos (cutting out the clutter in the background, or using the "thinify" button to make you look skinnier--there actually is such a thing) thereby creating a false impression of a given time or event. I don't think we can ever be completely accurate as we try to document our life experiences--simply our angle of observation will affect what we perceive--but I do think it's important to try and document the beautiful as well as the not-so-beautiful aspects of life.

Personally, I think this little picture is beautiful, but it's an image of our not-so-beautiful experience this week. This was during the EEG, and underneath the wrappings, Mitchell has 23 electrodes taped to his head. You can see the wires at the back of his head. I didn't know it at the time, but Mitchell was running a pretty good fever through this. Guy took the picture with his camera phone.

I do wish we had a picture of the LifeFlight helicopter Mitchell rode in. LifeFlight operates 4 helicopters in the state, two of each that I have pictured here, so Mitchell rode in one of these. It was something, though, to see the helicopter just sitting out on the lawn at Orem Community, where they don't have a helipad. In the ER, I'd seen a security person wandering around and then once we went outside, I saw another security person in a car parked facing the helicopter. Our assumption was that security was there to make sure no one came along and messed with the helicopter since it was just left sitting.

Sunday night, I drove home from the hospital and picked up the other boys at Deren and Liz's house. As I was tucking them into bed, Marcus asked how I'd liked the helicopter ride. I had to explain that Mitchell was the only one of us who got to ride and that he hadn't even been awake for it. I think Marcus was a little disappointed. I've avoided thinking too much about it, but I think any disappointment on my part may be amplified when we get the bill. . .