Let’s put this all into perspective. First, remember, Sam had his chest spread open and actually had human hands holding his heart. Think about that for a moment. Picture yourself allowing someone to open you up and hold your heart in their hands. Crazy, huh?
Sam actually looked much better than we could have hoped. Sure, he looked a little bit like someone roughed him over and the various wires and tubes all connected to machines we had never seen before took a little getting used to but overall, I did expect worse.
Then comes the part when Sam decides he’s ready to leave!! The nurses were commenting about how much he was attempting to breathe on his own and with his movement and obvious desire to wake up from drug induced unconsciousness, they put him on the fast track to remove the breathing tube. This is were things got better in many ways but Sam did complain a great deal about feeling like an elephant was on his chest and that he couldn’t catch his breath. Not being able to help someone can be tough but watching the nurse, Ashliegh, do her work to care for Sam was comforting all in itself. That girl got an A+ in my book.
The signs of Sam “waking up” were great to see but at the same time, seeing him cringing in pain and not being able to get comfortable for those first few hours was heart wrenching. I can’t even imagine how Rita and Emma felt seeing their loved one like that. Emotions were running on high but everyone handled themselves with dignity and grace and I am quite sure it was of a great comfort for Sam to know his girls were there to support him and watch over him.