8:45 AM
A new week begins here, one more where Gabriel says a big YES to life!
The night passed smoothly by his mother’s side, with oxygen saturation always above 98%.
This morning, at 6 AM, it even peaked at 100% for long periods.
It’s MAGNIFICENT, as the very expressive Brazilian Cristina Cordula would say!
The respiratory machine is currently set at 40%, with a frequency of 28 breaths per minute.
We don’t know yet when Gabriel will be able to do without it… but believe me, when that day comes, it will be a fiesta!
Thank you to all the French speakers who wished me a happy Father’s Day yesterday. We didn’t celebrate anything here because in Brazil, we celebrate it on August 10th. Which suits me well and I hope, will give Gabriel time to leave the ICU so we can finally have a big hug together, the three of us!
Daily Life in Bacterialand
Apart from that, in our daily life in “Bacterialand”, I feel that the ICU staff is finally taking more precautions.
This morning, I “exterminated a fly in the ICU corridor with my Havaianas flip-flop (effective, clean, neat, I’m going to offer my influencer talents to the brand). Two ants also ended their journey on the wall, right next to Gabriel’s bed.
Some more Personal News
Our two cats, Pompom and Manuelita, have found temporary foster families. It’s a huge relief for us.
As for our house in Barrinha, it’s for rent! Notice to beach vacation lovers! 😉
And many ask me if we continue to work during this period. The answer is yes… but differently with less time and depending on the emotional vibes as you can imagine.
Manuela continues to manage her rentals remotely, and on my side, I continue creating websites and supporting my students in training. The advantage of being able to work online, even from the ICU corridor.
I’m Sharing below a Message Written by Manuela on Facebook:
A Mother’s Reveries
There is no room for pity… nor for looking at pain… nor for blaming the Universe.
When I feel these sentiments trying to approach, I close the door myself before they enter.
He was in my belly for nine months. I felt him in me for 24 consecutive hours before his coming into the world.
I have every legitimacy to speak.
My husband has already found his way to cope with all this, he frees himself by writing. I, on the contrary, don’t “write as much as before. I don’t look at photos or videos of Gabriel. I” also avoid talking about it for too long… because I know that if I open that door, I risk entering a dark tunnel from which I might not be able to get out.
Gabriel doesn’t need that.
He needs support. Prayers. He is the life he has chosen to live.
And every day, he faces a challenge… and he overcomes it with a dignity that only he possesses.
I feel small beside him…
Small for having complained so many times about life… because of legal problems, a bill to pay…
Small for not having fully lived my life, very often.
Meanwhile, Gabriel, with inexplicable mastery, dodges bacteria…
While another child passes away, he remains…
And I’m certain: your prayers and all this chain of positive energy give him strength.
No mother… no father… imagines that the first months of their child’s life will be spent in a hospital bed.
If we only saw this aspect, we would remain prisoners of the pain of what we didn’t have.
I choose to look towards the future.
Towards the many wonderful years we are still going to live together.
And towards a quality life, full of meaning, full of love.
If you wish to send your prayer, your strength and all your love for Gabriel’s 100% healing, we gather every day at 9 AM (Brazil time) — 2 PM (France time) — in a prayer chain.
Those who wish can even set an alarm… and so it will be… until the day he leaves the hospital.
5:54 PM
Gabriel continues to do well.
It was a stable day for him: blood results are improving and his lungs remain stable.
The pulse therapy is scheduled for this Friday, if all goes well.
This treatment will temporarily deactivate his immune system, making him vulnerable. We have therefore requested that he be placed in isolation if possible (because bacterialand…)
Today again, we had to report the presence of ants on the wall, right next to him.
Other parents express their frustration. We now hear “FLY ALERT!” resounding in t “he ICU. It’s sad, but it’s so absurd that it becomes almost funny!”
Furthermore, I was called by the management regarding my two complaints from last week, as well as the open letter distributed to the staff.
The exchange was constructive. They are looking to improve things. I reminded them that we had already reported these issues in the past, and despite that, we had to report them again.
They proposed a more radical solution, which I won’t detail here for now. We’ll see if it bears fruit…
See you tomorrow for new adventures!
And don’t forget to send love to our son!
