It was the summer of 2014

PAGE 1Harmon

Stephen Harmon

Ms. Gardner

English 10 honors, Period Zero5 September 2014The Doctor WithinIt was the summer of 2014. I was looking forward to our familys 4th of the July celebration when on July 1st I started to feel sick. Each day it got worse, until on the 4th of July I ended up in the hospital with a burst appendix. After an ultrasound by the ER Dr. it was determined that I needed surgery right away. I remember being wheeled into a room where a nurse told me they were going to make me comfortable so they could perform the surgery. I began counting backwards, as the nurse told me to do, and the next thing I knew I was waking up in a room with an IV chained to my arm. It prevented all movement and I felt trapped.I had nurses coming and going for the first 24 hours. Then a nurse came in and said the Dr. would be in a bit to check on me. She gave me a pain pill and left. Just as I was feeling no pain the Dr. walked in. I thought to myself, Whoathis must be some pain pill because the Dr. is me! I mean his name tag says Dr. Stephen Harmon but how can that be?Hello Stephen, Im Doctor Harmon, How are you? He said.

I just sat there not knowing what to say because this was impossible! How can I be standing there when Im lying here? I looked at him and said, Fine. . . I guess, but who are you?

Im you he said. Im the you that you can be. You had a really close call there. We were able to clean out all the bacteria. Well have you on some heavy antibiotics, and in another 4 to 5 days youll be as good as new, any questions?

Yeah, whats your favorite book?

Well I love all books, but my favorite book is Odd Thomas.Whats your favorite music type and favorite band?

I love the good old rock n roll music, as far as it goes for band Id have to say The Beetles. Now I have to go, but before I go I have something for you. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a practice syringe.

Never lose this, and always keep it with you. Now I have rounds to do but the nurses here will take great care of you and Ill see you before you go. He said, with deep conviction.Wait! You cant go, I have so many more questions!

Theyll all be answered in time, but for now get some rest, your body will need all the rest it can get to completely heal itself.

I watched him as he left, wondering once again how this could all be possible and at the same time feeling extremely grateful that I was still alive. I let the pain pill do its job and I left this world for a dream world. And what a dream world it was. . . .In that dream, I saw all my relatives and this other man that somehow I knew but had never met. I knew this being; his name was God. He was there with my family watching over me. Watching over the Doctor as he did the surgery, helping me remember things that I had studied, or helping me know which choices would help me most. I realized that they had always been watching over me and all my siblings, even my mother and father. It was like a huge family reunion where there was laughing and playing. My Uncles were there, the ones that had passed away when they were younger. One of them wanted to do something for me so that I would always remember them, he conjured up a tiny syringe, I then watched him as he put it in my wallet. Its funny how dreams can seem so real . . . .I remember waking up and feeling renewed, I wanted to change my entire view of life. As I laid there I thought about the dream and how good it felt knowing that somewhere out there, there are people that care about us and can watch over us.

I thought about everything that had happened that keep me safe.

I knew that when I finally got out of the hospital I would work hard to keep the goals I had set. I closed my eyes again and the next thing I remember was hearing my mother talking to the Doctor. I opened my eyes, anxious to see how she was reacting to the fact that this Doctor was me! She was standing in front of him so I couldnt see him but I thought funny, his voice seems different, he sounds German.

She moved to the side and I said whos that?

Mother looked at me and said Hey! Youre awake!

I thought, Of course Im awake, Ive been awake this whole time. I looked around but everything looked different. It seemed as though it was a different room, as if someone changed my position while I was sleeping. Where am I? What happened to my room? I exclaimed.My mother looked at me and said Stephen, this is Dr. Bozuk, hes the one that did your surgery.

No, thats not him, I met the doctor and he was me, I mean someone who looked like me, he even had a name tag that had my name on it.

Dr. Bozuk and my mother gave each other that look, you know, the look that makes you feel like youre crazy.

My mother told me that I was in recovery, that the surgery went well, and that when the doctor opened me up he realized my appendix had already burst and I was lucky to be alive because of the bacteria inside me. I thought to myself I already know all that, the doctor already told me, and he gave me a syringe to hang ontoShe explained that my recovery had taken longer than they expected and that, that had caused them some concerned. Could it be a thought, could it all have been a dream while I was in recovery? It didnt take long to realize that it had been a dream; I was a little disappointed because it had seemed so real.

I spent the next several days recovering. The day came to go home and I was never so grateful. I was ready to get home, to receive my responsibilities, and get back to normal life. I walked into my room, checked to make sure everything was ok with my snakes and grabbed my wallet to put the gift cards Id been given, by friends and family, inside. As I reached into my wallet I felt something sharp. What on earth could be in my wallet that was sharp? I asked myself. I pulled it out and it was the small practice syringe. I sat on the bed trying to understand and then realized I would probably never understand. The most important thing was, I was being watched over by celestial beings, and I would never forget it. All these years later, I still have the syringe, I keep it with me always and when I pull it out, I have that same feeling I had when I was dreaming of my family and the man that I believe was God.