Questions About The Future

We saw Yitzchak Meir at Shaare Tzedek Hospital today. It was very sad to see such a little baby hooked up to all these wires. His breathing was erratic, and his colour was very pale. I was reminded of the time I went with my father to see his mother in the Intensive Care of Brooklyn’s Downstate Medical Center. It was two days after my other grandmother had died, and now my father’s mother had had a stroke and was hooked up to slightly more machines and wires than my Yitzchak Meir. It was the only time in my life I have seen my father cry. And today, seeing my son in almost the same condition, was the first time that I cried, too. I tried to sing to him HaMalach HaGo-al, but the words just wouldn’t come out.

We met with Dr. Kline, who explained the situation to us. The latest CT scan was very ominous, showing little to no differentiation between the various components of the brain. We were told to prepare ourselves for questions regarding Yitzchak Meir’s care in his final days in this world. The Gemora in Brachos says that one must continue to have hope for a salvation from Hashem, even if there is a sword at one’s throat. We continue to have hope of a salvation. Certainly God can save our child if that is what He wants. But even with perfect hope, we realize that God might have other plans for our Yitzchak Meir. So we are turning to our Rabbis for their guidance in this matter. For example, the doctors hope to get him off the respirator soon, and back to breathing on his own. But what if after a week he needs to go back on a respirator. Medically, this would indicate that his body is just not capable of breathing on its own anymore, which in normal circumstances would result in death. Do we instruct the doctors to put Yitzchak Meir back on the respirator, or leave him off? What if he can’t feed through a tube anymore? Do the doctors open his chest and stick a feeding tube into his stomach? What if he can’t breath through his mouth/nose anymore? Do they do a tracheotomy? Apparently Shaare Tzedek Hospital has a Rabbi on the premises that is expert on these matters. We were unable to contact him today due to the late hour of our call, but we hope to be in contact tomorrow.

We thank you for all your support and prayers. At this point, though, we ask that you pray that God does what is “right and good” for the entire Seltzer family, rather than for a “complete recovery” for our son.