Saturday, November 29, 2008

The little astronauts

This picture of Max, taken through one of the openings for hands in his isolette that can be sealed, reminds me of pictures of Apollo astronauts on the acceleration couches in their capsule.

Max at GUH

As I've said before, there's a lot about the NICU that reminds me of the manned space program. The babies in their isolettes are little astronauts in their capsules.

The first rule of the NICU is not to talk, not to look, not to intrude. Don't talk to the other parents, don't look at the other babies, or talk above a whisper. But Carolyn and I see the groups of parents huddled around the isolettes, whispering to their children. We don't need to hear them to know what they're saying. Those parents are just saying what mission controllers have been whispering into their headsets forever: You're a long way away, you're travelling very fast, we're worried about you, come back to the Earth, come home, come home, come home.