“Mama, why do I need to go to the hospital so many days?”

That was his question to me while I was driving him to the hospital yesterday morning. Not grudgingly. Not angrily. Not even sadly. Just innocently and curiously.

Oh my sweet child.

Alistair was discharged earlier than expected. Last Monday he was allowed to go home. Yay!

Unfortunately, that was also when our ordeal started.

Somehow, something around his central line is leaking. We noticed that his dressing was all wet on Monday night itself, and had to take him to the emergency department (ED) to get it looked at. By the time we got it changed, it was midnight.

And then the next day, it was wet again. Back to the cancer centre we went.

This happened again and again. We had to go to the hospital every single day. Sometimes to the cancer ward, sometimes to the ED. And within one week, we’ve had to have his dressing changed four times.

It’s frustrating. It’s exhausting. It’s painful and distressing for Alistair. And it’s worrying too, especially when we have to bring him in to ED and have him exposed to all sorts of illness there.

What’s worse? There doesn’t seem to be any immediate solution to the leak, which means we’ll just have to keep going in whenever it leaks or gets wet. Which is every day.

I think one of the possible solutions is to change his central line. But because he’s so near the end of his induction therapy period (first month treatment), the oncology team prefers to leave it in. Plus, he’s supposed to get his central line changed to a port anyway. Although we haven’t been given a surgery date. Hopefully soon.

Another conversation we had.

A: “I really miss camping.”

Me: “You do?”

A: “Yes. And I miss Peggy (our camper trailer). And I miss camping with Emma and Sophie (our kids’ close friends).”

Me: “Hopefully soon we can go camping again yea?”

A: “But I can’t! I need to be at the hospital. Because I’m sick.”

Soon, my little boy. One day, you will be well enough for camping again. One day, you will be completely well.

Besides the frustrating leak, Alistair has had a good time at home this week. It was nice to have everyone together in the house at the same time again. He’s regaining his strength, and is trying to run around in the house (oh my heart). But he’s still not strong enough yet to climb the stairs by himself.

Amy’s been making lots of arts and craft stuff for him. Paper blankets, a picture of Dinosaur Munch eating leaves from a tree, cards, etc. It’s great to see two of them playing (and fighting) again.

So, this Wednesday will be his Day 29 of treatment. He’ll be doing another chemotherapy, and then some procedures to check on his bone marrow and see how he’s been responding to treatment. The results will determine the next phase of his treatment.

Please pray that it will be good results. That he will show amazing progress. That the doctors will be more than happy with how he’s doing.

God, please heal Alistair completely. Protect him through this treatment journey. Strengthen my little boy and restore his body to perfect health and normalcy. Amen.

Alistair family