Ankle surgery results in a vision of hope for the future

In the Bible, there’s a story of a blind man on the side of the road begging for Jesus’ help. Jesus spat on the ground, made mud, and put it on the man’s eyes. He then instructed the man to go to the water and wash the mud from his eyes; the man did so and was healed.

I can’t get this story out of my mind.

The past few months have been difficult for my son Caeleb, who has hemophilia. He lives with chronic pain, a result of severe damage to his knee and ankle.

To help, Caeleb recently had ankle surgery. For the month before, he’d been home from school and trying to keep up with his assignments online. The pain, meanwhile, kept him off his feet. After surgery, he recuperated at home for three weeks, a time when his schoolwork became overwhelming.

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Caeleb is now back in school and continuing to heal from the surgery. In fact, he recently went with his band to perform at the local elementary schools, which was the first such event he’s participated in for months.

After the performance ended, the students began to load the buses and equipment truck. Chimes, timpani, and several racks of music stands were in line, waiting to be loaded. During this seemingly ordinary task, I witnessed a sight I won’t forget.

Caeleb was standing in the back of the truck to help organize the loading. He walked down the ramp, picked up the bottom of a rack of stands, and walked backward into the truck with the equipment. Caeleb helped his friends load the equipment truck. He was actively involved.

Loading a truck may not seem like a big feat, but just last fall, Caeleb relied on his band friends to get his percussion equipment to the football field, where they rehearsed. He then used his walker or wheelchair to get to where he needed to be. Despite this assistance, he still often had too much pain to stay at practice.

As I watched the kids loading the truck, it took me a moment to understand the beauty I’d witnessed. Suddenly, my heart began to warm. My eyes teared up. It was like everything I’d watched was once a dull color, but then the film covering my eyes was removed, and everything brightened into the most vivid expressions of color I’ve ever seen.

I felt like that blind man who washed the mud from his eyes. Afterward, the man could see the beauty surrounding him for the first time. I didn’t realize that I, too, had been blind.

During Caeleb’s bouts of extreme pain, I only saw the problem: his pain. And it broke my heart. I did everything possible to help alleviate that pain, and I even helped him make a plan for his mental health. But unfortunately, I was mired in what was hurting my son, and I couldn’t envision his future.

A beautiful afternoon with kids buzzing around the buses: That’s when my blindness was healed. It’s been a long time since I’ve allowed myself to see Caeleb’s future.

When getting into the car, he excitedly said, “Mom, did you see me using my muscles?”

I saw Caeleb using his body in a way that had been lost for years.

His future is bright, and no longer will blindness prevent my vision.

Note: Hemophilia News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Hemophilia News Today or its parent company, Bionews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to hemophilia.