I left work early to try and beat the crazy Los Angeles rush hour. It had rained for the first time in a very long time, so that made the road condition even worse. I work on the opposite side of the city, so it took about an hour to get there. Aside from a terrible down fall of rain, the trip was relatively an uneventful one. I wasn't sure what to expect visiting the hospital. I've never really had any contact with people going through cancer treatments, let alone little kids. I spent a lot of time with kids over the years, I really enjoy their energy and excitement about life.
I arrived about 6:30 and joined several of my other teammates in the lobby. The lobby was a very happy environment, lots of colors. Looked more like the entrance of a children's museum, than the lobby of a hospital. It wasn't the typical boring white environment of an adult hospital. It seemed like it would be a much more inviting place to small kids about to go down a tough road.
A woman named Terri met us all in the lobby and ushered us upstairs into a small conference room to go over the details of the visit. She gave us an introduction to the hospital and allowed us to ask any questions. I was curious of what the age break down was. Everyone from newborn to 19 years old. Other questions asked where how long the patients had been there. Some were there for a day or two, others had been there for 6 months. Some of my teammates brought toys for the kids, but we were told not to bring stuffed animals. I was curious why, and it was a pretty simple answer. They carry disease too well. So when people do bring stuffed animals, they need to be cleaned by the staff before being handed out to the kids. I guess I wouldn't have thought about that.
After our brief breakdown of the hospital was done, we went over the rules and guidelines of meeting the kids. Outside of each room there were different rules listed on the walls. It basically broke down into 4 options. First, everything is fine. Just make sure you wash your hands before meeting the patient. Second, was you needed to wear gloves. Third, you need to have a full gown, mask and gloves on. Finally, fourth. You were not allowed in the room.
These precautions were not really for us, but instead the patients. A lot of them had very weak immune systems, and the slightest mild virus could be really bad for them. They didn't want us bringing anything in, or going from room to room passing it. The first room we passed was the kids playroom. They said we could just enter and go talk to the kids. The group was a bit apprehensive at first, but I was ready to go play with the kids, so I opened the door and everyone followed.
This room was definitely for the younger kids, there was a sandbox on a table, a video game system, a arts and crafts table, and a nap area. The first kid I talked to was a young girl in the middle of an intense game of Sponge Bob Square Pants. She was having trouble with getting the character to jump over a wall. Her name is Ashley, she is nine years old. She had already been through several rounds of chemotherapy. She had no hair on her head, and had an IV drip with her. She had a very cute purple tiara on, and a purple feather boa. She was so absorbed in the game, but a couple of us started to help her figure out her problem with the wall. After a good 15 mins and trying different things, we solved the wall dilemma and all rejoiced! I will get back to Ashley later, as I think I was most effected by her.
Stepping out of the playroom, I met up with a couple of my teammates. We were invited to go meet Hector. We didn't need to do anything to enter his room, just wash our hands. When we walked in he and his buddy were in the middle of a game of street fighter. Hector is 19 and had been in and out for a couple months. He still had a couple rounds of Chemo to go, and was looking a bit tired. 2 of my other teammates were with me, both girls. He was definitely more interested in talking to them as a young man of 19 would! We chatted for about 15 mins or so. He told me he would like to finish high school and pursue college. He hadn't quite decided what he wanted to do yet, but he said he enjoyed math and chemistry. Hector would have been through with high school if his sickness didn't get in the way. He was very eager to put this all behind him and move on with his life.
Stepping out of Hector's room we ran into a bunch of Christmas carolers walking down the hall playing music and sending holiday joy. After the parade left, we were invited into another room. This room, however, needed a bit more attention. We had to put on gowns, masks and gloves. Only 2 were allowed in at a time. We walked in and met a young man of 18. His name is Emilio. He was in the middle of surfing the web. Looking up at us you could immediately see several of the side effects of the Chemotherapy. He had no hair on his head and he had some pretty bad scabs around his mouth. He also looked pretty week, but had high spirits. We started chatting a bit, and found out he too needs to finish high school with his sickness also getting in the way. He was diagnosed in May and has been going through rounds of Chemo since. He hasn't eaten much over the last few months because he just had a hard time keeping it down. He wasn't a big fan of the hospital food either, but his mom would cook for him when she could.
We started talking about his future goals and he would like to become a dental assistant, or a assistant in the hospital. It sounded like he wanted to be able to help people the way others had helped him. Emilio then started to ask me and my teammate Nikki about what we do. We told him we work in visual effects for movies. His eyes immediately brightened up and started asking us more questions. We told him we worked on Hulk, Alvin and several others. He seemed so excited about it and was asking us about how we did everything. It was really great to see him so excited in his tired state. He told us it made his day to meet us, he thought it was really cool. The feeling was very mutual, its inspiring to see him keep his head up when going through such a terrible thing. We continued to chat to him for awhile about movies and funny stories about what we do. His mom walked in with dinner and said hi to us. She did not speak English, and we didn't speak Spanish, so Emilio translated for us. Emilio seemed like a very bright young man and I wished him the best with his treatments. He said goodbye with a smile and we were on our way.
After removing all the gear and washing my hands I walked the hallways a bit just watching all the events passing by. I saw several of my teammates in one room and decided to join them. This was young Ashley's room. She was sitting on her bed eating her dinner and chatting with my team. Seeing her now, I could more clearly understand her problems. She was missing part of her left leg. I spoke with her mom who was clearly tired and about 8 months pregnant. She told me the disease, but I don't think I would be able to spell it. Basically a cancer in her femur. The more I heard about the procedure the more amazed I was. First she had her Femur removed. Then the lower leg is attached at the hip and reversed. So the heal of her foot is facing forward. This will act like a knee for her prosthetic leg. It was truly amazing, I had no idea procedures like that we done.
Going back to chat with Ashley she was telling us that she was excited about her telescope that her parents got her for Christmas. We started asking her what she was going to look at through it and she said, "stars silly!" We then started asking her if she knew what the big dipper was and she shook her head. Then My coach, Tim, started drawing on a piece of paper what the big dipper looked like. She was definitely excited about it. We asked her what else she liked to do besides looking at stars and she said she liked Hannah Montana and Soccer. She said she couldn't wait to go run around the soccer field again once she got her new leg. I totally believe she will to. She had a lot of energy and there is no way she is gonna let cancer get in the way of her fun. After a bit of soccer talk, she wanted to get back to stars. She asked us what other constilations we knew and I named a few, but didn't know how to draw them. So thinking for a second, I pulled out my iphone and did a google search for Orion. Soon as I found it, I took it over to her and showed her the picture. That was it. I was never getting my phone back. She thought it was so cool! After looking at several constilations and planets, she wanted to see what else I had on my phone. I showed her a game, then after that, for the next 20 mins or so, we went through every single game on my phone. She was really excited about it. When it was time to go, she very nicely handed back my phone and said thank you. This little girl had been through so much. Several rounds of chemotherapy, a 15 hour procedure to remove her upper leg and re-attach her lower leg, and still just trying to be a little kid and enjoy life. She had a great spirit about her, higher spirits in fact than a lot of kids I meet. Despite her problems, she was still just a little kid enjoying video games, Disney channel, and learning.
Bidding my farewell from Ashley, I said goodbye and wished her and her mother the best of luck and happy holidays. I walked to the elevator with a couple of my teammates then made my way towards my car. It was raining still during my car ride home and I took that time to sit and reflect. I turned the radio off and just listened to the beating of the raindrops on the windshield. I have certainly had my share of up and downs in my life, and particularly this year. But it is nothing compared to what these young kids are going through. It really gives you perspective on life. I won't forget anytime soon Hector, Emilio, and Ashley. They were all going through a really tough time and were all so positive about life.
This is what this team is all about. Helping out those that need it. Helping Ashley get a new leg, helping Hector and Emilio get through the chemo and go to college and live happy lives. Unfortunately, our medical system is not cheap. It is draining on the families just trying to help the ones they love. I am proud to be apart of Team in Training, and hope you now understand as I do, just how important fighting Cancer is. This is a fight we can win and we deserve to.
Thanks for your support.
-Matt
