Stories from the Stringam Family Ranches of Southern Alberta

From the 50s and 60s to today . . .



Saturday, January 21, 2017

Little Aggravations

Now
Then
Our oldest grandson had to have his tonsils out.
Poor little guy.
But they were so huge that they made it difficult for him to swallow and were constantly getting infected.
There were perks.
For a week, he got to live on freezies and fruit pops and jello and things cold and sweet and delicious.
Paradise.
He is feeling much better now.
And able to swallow, perhaps for the first time in his life.
Bless modern medicine.
It was day surgery. In and out.
The whole experience reminded me of my older brother, George.
Who had the same problem, fifty years ago.
Are we seeing a pattern, here?
George had a big appetite.
And a small throat.
He would chew and chew and chew on a piece of tender, wonderful roast beef.
Chew and chew and chew.
Then, finally, give up in despair and sit there, morosely, with a lump of meat in his mouth that he simply couldn't swallow.
My Dad took pity on him and told him to spit his mouthful into Dad's hand.
Which he did.
And which my Dad then disposed of.
Umm. Ick.
Then George would happily move on to the potatoes and gravy.
For a couple of years, the same scenario was played out at the Stringam dinner table.
George starting out with things chewy and delicious.
Then moving on to things mushy and easier to swallow.
Finally, it became so common that Dad didn't even get the chance to offer to help.
George would chew and chew and chew, then reach for Dad's hand and spit his mouthful into it.
Often without Dad realizing it.
Until it had happened.
Sort of hard to ignore then . . .
When he did it at a restaurant, my parents decided that something had to be done.
Checkup.
Diagnosis: large tonsils.
Solution: Removal.
Back then, though the operation was common, it meant several day's stay at the local hospital.
But with lots and lots of ice cream and jello and things cold and sweet and delicious.
Modern medicine has come so far.

10 comments:

  1. I would definitely give up my tonsils for ice cream!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ick indeed.
    I still have my tonsils. And sadly for my ever increasing girth have no troubles swallowing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. There has to be an upside for an operation like that! I'm glad your grandson is doing fine now. Tonsils can be quite a problem for breathing as well as swallowing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He's nearly as tall as me, now. And he's only 10! I think the operation was a total success!

      Delete
  4. Wait....he could only swallow things mushy and smooth..like ice cream and jello so they took his tonsils out and for a couple of weeks he could live off things that were mushy and smooth like ice cream and jello and then suddenly...it was no longer okay to live off ice cream and jello. Where's the justice in that?

    ReplyDelete
  5. I remember having my tonsils out aged 19. There was no icecream and jelly for me. I got normal food, including crispy toast; apparently the sloughing helps the throat heal faster, according to the sister in charge at the time anyway. I still have vestiges of tonsil tissue, since they were so deeply embedded the doctor couldn't get it all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow! I always pictured them as little fleshly appendages sitting there waiting to get scraped off. I guess they are a bit more than that!

      Delete

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