22 DEC 2007 Rollin' with my homies

"It's amazing how I get to meet shot up Iraqis from all walks of life here in the hospital. Today I treated a 30-year-old man who is a soldier and a seven-year-old boy who just plays. Both got shot.
The soldier was in our local province. He took some small arms fire and felt a burning pain across his chest for a moment. He had some blood on his uniform and could tell he was shot. He put on a bandage and hopped a ride with one of his buddies into a base. When they peeled off his uniform, he had a hole in his chest that went from his neck to the top of his shoulder. You could have fit a Subway 12-incher in there. His ribcage was still there, but his right collarbone was shattered. Shiny white pieces of it poked out of the wound like dinosaur bones at Peabody Museum. He was pretty comfortable, just didn't want to use his right arm. I was impressed. We got some tests, and then operated on him to remove shards of bone and dead muscle. He was very calm and thankful as he woke up after surgery. He, Translator A., and I had a very nice conversation. Almost as if we had just finished an elective operation he had requested. In two days I will close his wound. Even though his arm will be in a sling for a couple of months, he should get everything back. A few inches to the right, I never would have met him."
Made a Difference