Story taken from the Book, "The Voices Within Us" by Jim Stewart

November 1980

Many years ago my mother was in the hospital with many complications from cancer. This time, I barely got to the emergency room. They had to do emergency surgery on on a previous surgery that did not heal. Her kidneys had shut down due to the antibiotics that she was taking, so they rushed her into dialysis. They took her to the hyperbaric chamber to induce pure oxygen, to see if this would help her wound heal. She made it through all of this, but the medications she was taking put her into a psuedo-Alzhiemer's state. One minute she would recognize me the next she wouldn't.

One day while she wa in the hospital, I went to her house to do some repairs, just in case she got to go home. This was wishful thinking on my part. I receied a phone call from the hospital telling me that my mother's heart had stopped and they were calling a "Code Blue" on her. I locked all the doors and headed to the hospital (A thirty minute drive). All the way there I thought the worst, but when I got there she was sitting up in bed telling jokes to the doctors and nurses. I was really relieved.

I sat there and visited her for  a short while, then headed back to her house. Again, I got another call from the hospital; again it was a "Code Blue." This time, I felt that this was reallyit-two "codes" on the same day. Again, when I got there and she was sitting up in bed telling jokes to the doctors and nurses. Again, I viseted her for a while and headed back to her house. Then the hospital called me again. Theytold me that my mother had slipped into a coma. I got back into my car and headed back to the hospital. I was praying for her, the whole way. This time when I got to the hospital she was not sitting up and she was still in a coma.

Every day, I would go and visit my mother-once in the morning and once at night. As she lay there in a coma, I did not know if she could hear me or not. For two weeks this went on. They wanted to sign some papers about CPR. I told them that I was going to go home and get some rest and think about it. When I got home I wrote a little song for my mother, called, "It's a Short Life." When I finished writing the song I knew my mission was not over; I had to go back to the hospital and sing this little song to her. So I loaded my ratty old guitar into my car and away I went. It was about one o'clock in the morning. (What was I thinking?)

I went up to the ninth floor, Intensive Care Unit. There wer only two patients in there and both were in comas. I told the nurse that I wanted to go and see my mother. She told me that it was after visiting hours and I would not be permitted to go to her room. I told her that I had writen a song and I just wanted to play it for her. The nurse then called over a couple of doctors and they told me that I was creating a scene. They told me that they were going to have to call security if I would not leave. I told them, "Go right ahead. By the time I finish this song the security police can take me anywhere they want me to go. I told them, "I am not leaving until I sing this song." They called security and I went into my mother'sroom. I grabbed my mother's hand and said, " Momma, I don't know if you can hear me or not, but I wrote asong for you and I'm gonna play it." I sang it and then I grasped her hand and told her that I loved her. Then my Momma grabbed my hand back. I looked at her and she winked at me and gave the Okay sign and smiled. I told her that security was coming to get me and I needed to go. She nodded her head. Again, I said, "I Love You." She gave me the thumbs up siggn and I left the room.

When the doctors and nurses saw me they all cam towards me and said, "I hope this makes you happy, Mr. Stewart!" I told them, "Instead of being concerned about me, you need to check in on my mother. She came out of her coma.' They said, "What?" I told them, "What I did with one song was more than you have accomplished in two weeks! Thank you. Now where are the police." Right at that moment the elevator doors opended up  and ut walked two security officers. It just so happened that I knew them both. One of them, Doug Fulcher, asked me how my mother was doing. I told him that she just came out of her coma. Doug and his brother Tommy had eaten at my house many times. I asked them If I could buy them some coffee and some donuts and we could chat. Doug said, " We would like to, but we came up here to run some bum out of the hospital." I told him that I wa that bum and I'll leave after we have some coffee. Doug laughed and said, "Hell, if we'd known it was you, we never would have even come up here." I said, "Now can we get some coffee?" They said, "We'll get the donuts."

On my way home, I started thinking about the voices that urged me to go back to the hospital to sing that little song I had written. I prayed for the doctors and nurses; Then I prayed for my Momma. I then thanked the Lord for the healing.

My mother lived for one year.