The Idea of an Essay, Volume 2

30 to go to the neighborhood pool and play some pickup basketball at the park nearby. Instead, I was on my way to the emergency room because my blood sugar was over 700 milliliters per deciliter. In the car I told Mom again, this time with sobs in between words, “I don’t want to do anything this summer. No camps, no activities. Nothing.” She looked at me and reassuringly said that it was okay. I was free to do absolutely nothing. We arrived at the hospital, and I received the first of my many insulin injections. I don’t remember much about those first three or four hours in the emergency room. All I do recall is lying on this extremely flat bed with few covers. My mom sat on my left in a chair, speaking to me softly as I cried the hardest I have ever cried. Many different nurses and doctors came to me during that time, informing us on the latest updates and blood sugar levels. During those long hours in the ER, my pastor came to visit. This big, tall man, wearing his Texas Longhorn shirt, sat down and prayed over me. Finally, I was admitted to the hospital, and we all got settled into our room. The situation was not an ideal one. I had to spend the night in this crammed hospital room wearing that awful thin gown with people coming in periodically to prick my finger and stab me with a needle. To add to my pleasures, I was put in the only room on that floor that had double occupancy. A dark blue curtain divided the two sides of the room. Even though my family did not interact with the other family and we did not see each other, it was just another annoyance to the whole event. Not only did the poor group on the other side have to put up with my family, but my family and I had to listen to their choices in TV shows. At one point we could overhear the loud shouting of people on that obnoxious Maury show. It was a nightmare. It felt to me like everything was spinning and spinning, and all I wanted was stillness and quiet. During my time at the hospital, many friends came to visit me. It was heartening to see how many people cared and wanted to encourage me during this troubling time. A number of them even brought me gifts or items of theirs to entertain me. Kevin and Victoria, my youth pastor and his wife, also came to visit. They brought a great variety of things to keep me occupied while sitting in this overcrowded, plain little hospital room for hours on end. Victoria specifically brought me her own collection of Jane Austen’s novels. This item will always stand out in my memory because it sparked a