In Sickness and Togetherness: finding Strength in Unplanned Moments

On a perfect Saturday night, while celebrating a friend’s birthday, we received a call from our firstborn. He had gone to a punk concert, fell while dancing and was now in the ER awaiting X-ray results, anticipating a fracture. Soon enough, the doctor confirmed it.

The only issue was that he was five hours away, having just moved to a new city three months ago. He needed to stay in the hospital overnight, so we decided to try to get some rest since we weren’t in shape to drive five hours in the night and manage what was sure to be a long, unpredictable day ahead.

Sleep didn’t come easily, so I packed for my husband and prepared for our “we’ll figure it out when we get there” scenario. The next morning, we drove out, got him discharged, headed to his apartment to pack some stuff, clean out his fridge, and bring him home, along with his pile of laundry. All these year this kid never brought dirty laundry home.

Very next day, we took him to the hospital, and a surgery date was scheduled. Ten days later, on an early Tuesday morning, the surgery was done by one of Boston’s best doctors, and by lunchtime, we were back home. He endured pain and medication for a few days, but by the following Monday, he was already back to work. The past three weeks have been quite an adventure for us all.

These challenging days have brought my village into focus once again. Friends have supported us in their own ways—checking in, cooking, spending time with Ajey, and sometimes just keeping him company so Ashish and I could take a break. His brother Anand gave up his bed and now sleeps in the same room to help Ajey through the night, lending a hand when needed and keeping a close watch.

We’d gotten used to doing things our own way, but now we’re back to ensuring someone is home with Ajey at all times. Coordinating schedules has been interesting, and we’re improving at taking turns when we go out.

But what I’m enjoying most is having Ajey at home and getting him to watch TV with me. We’ve finished Gullak, a Hindi series and are wrapping up The Lincoln Lawyer. He’ll be home for another 6-7 weeks, and I already have a list of things for us to watch together. I’ll keep sharing our experience.

We’re doing well and looking forward to Diwali and Thanksgiving, with our hearts and home full. Please feel free to visit—we know Ajey would love some company besides his parents!  😊 A Mangalgiri for celebration and festivities.

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Ajey’s beautiful hair became an unintended casualty—we just couldn’t manage it with his limited mobility. Even the barber was sad to cut his soft, silky curls

On surgery day, Anand was up early, helping his brother out of the house and getting him settled in the car. 

and we were home soon enough.