Wrong Kind Of Excitement!

My nephew is on leave for the holidays (Marine), and he and his little sister came over last night for dinner and a movie. Well, that was the plan anyway.

What's the old saying-Men make plans while God laughs or something like that?

My brother stayed for dinner too, then Nephew, Hubbs, and Youngest went to rent movies. When they got back, they had one movie that was slightly questionable so Hubbs and I were checking the parental advisories on the trusty interwebs. Nephew decided to eat the left over steak.

"Mom! Cousins choking!"

"Holy shit, call 911" (which is my immediate reaction to everything)

Youngest had hit him on the back once, then I tried the Heimlich Maneuver. He was kind of able to speak, but he was turning red and spitting out huge amounts of saliva. Then Hubbs did the Heimlich, which left him better able to speak, but he said he still felt the steak stuck in his throat.

We called 911, and we are lucky enough to live about 1 minute away from our local fire station. They were here before the 911 operator was done asking me the usual questions.

It was determined that he needed to be seen, to possibly have an esophageal scope and have the foreign body removed. They took off in the ambulance (by the way, did you know if you are active duty military you can go to any hospital and be seen?) and Hubbs followed while I stayed home with Youngest and Niece.

They sat there for about 2 hours, when Nephew started feeling better and they decided the scope wasn't necessary, but they did take an x-ray to confirm the blockage had passed.

He's okay-a little embarrassed about having to be told to take smaller bites and chew more thoroughly, but he's fine. Thank you God, Jesus, or whoever is listening today. (have I ever mentioned that my Grandmother died from choking on food?)

So that left us today, all of us emotionally drained and feeling like we could have lost him. Which leads me to start thinking about how this is nothing-he's about to be shipped to Afghanistan, or North Korea, or whoever the hell we've decided is a threat. It's a little too much for my fragile nature today. I'm kind of feeling like I'm going off the deep end anyway (too much unstructured vacation time) and this has affected me more than I realize.

This is probably one of the most selfish things I've ever said but I'm saying it anyway.

I understand and appreciate the need for the military, I really do. I have always had a place in my heart for the men and women who are willing to fight and potentially die for me and my freedom.

But couldn't it be someone else?