Courage; defined as the ability to do something that may be frightening to others or, having strength in the face of pain or grief. When most people hear the word courage their mind might jump to the military or law enforcement, not me. I did not physically witness this incident of courage, for I was inborn, but I have heard the stories.
It all began on the cold, winter day of February 27, 1998. My brother, Ethan, was admitted to KU Medical Center from contracting strep pneumococcal meningitis from another child at his daycare. This bacterial infection attacked his brain, causing it to swell and put too much pressure on his skull and ears. This later resulted in his eardrums shattering when his brain started to shrink back down to normal size, leaving him in a deaf state. After a couple weeks of extensive rounds of antibiotics and some minor procedures to help with the inflammation for the infection, Ethan come out of his illness with just hearing loss which is short of a miracle.
It took about a day or so for one of the doctors to confront Mom about getting an implant which would help Ethan hear, and that was some positive news Mom was grateful for, her son had a chance to hear …show more content…
I also think this next instance is an act of courage. The first doctor who drilled into Ethan's head, messed up big time, which scared everyone because it's a very complicated procedure. Nobody, including Mom wanted to try and do a second procedure, and again her son's future was in her hands. Either fail and be forever deaf or try again and have hearing. They decided to try again and this time it was successful. Why is this an act of courage? She kept together as a person and a mother as death lingered over Ethan multiple times, and the most important she didn’t give up hope that her son would one day hear once
It all began on the cold, winter day of February 27, 1998. My brother, Ethan, was admitted to KU Medical Center from contracting strep pneumococcal meningitis from another child at his daycare. This bacterial infection attacked his brain, causing it to swell and put too much pressure on his skull and ears. This later resulted in his eardrums shattering when his brain started to shrink back down to normal size, leaving him in a deaf state. After a couple weeks of extensive rounds of antibiotics and some minor procedures to help with the inflammation for the infection, Ethan come out of his illness with just hearing loss which is short of a miracle.
It took about a day or so for one of the doctors to confront Mom about getting an implant which would help Ethan hear, and that was some positive news Mom was grateful for, her son had a chance to hear …show more content…
I also think this next instance is an act of courage. The first doctor who drilled into Ethan's head, messed up big time, which scared everyone because it's a very complicated procedure. Nobody, including Mom wanted to try and do a second procedure, and again her son's future was in her hands. Either fail and be forever deaf or try again and have hearing. They decided to try again and this time it was successful. Why is this an act of courage? She kept together as a person and a mother as death lingered over Ethan multiple times, and the most important she didn’t give up hope that her son would one day hear once