I was sent this article and an accompanying photo from a friend of mine in Michigan. I have not enclosed the photo as its a bit squeemish and if you dont like watching operations etc, not good. However, if you still want to see what the papers referred to as the hand of hope - email p/m me and I will forward direct to you. Its amazing what happened and it made my wife and I stop and look and think for quite a while.. I quote....
"The picture began circulating in November. It should be "The Picture of the
Year," or perhaps, "Picture of the Decade." It won't be. In fact, unless
you obtained a copy of the US paper which published it, you probably would
never have seen it.
The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander
Armas, who is being operated on by surgeon named Joseph Bruner.
The baby was diagnosed with spina bifida and would not survive if removed
from his mother's womb. Little Samuel's mother, Julie Armas, is an obstetrics
nurse in Atlanta. She knew of Dr. Bruner's remarkable surgical procedure.
Practicing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, he performs
these special operations while the baby is still in the womb.
During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via C-section and
makes a small incision to operate on the baby. As Dr. Bruner completed the
surgery on Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed
hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon's finger. Dr. Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most
emotional moment of his life, and that for an instant during the procedure he was just frozen, totally immobile.
The photograph captures this amazing event with perfect clarity. The
editors titled the picture, "Hand of Hope." The text explaining the picture
begins, "The tiny hand of 21-week-old fetus Samuel Alexander Armas emerges from the mother's uterus to grasp the finger of Dr. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life." Little Samuel's mother said they "wept for days" when they saw the picture.
Samuel was born in perfect health, the operation 100 percent successful."
Just cant imagine what that doctor went through in his mind. I hope he had the best christmas ever and I bet he still keeps contact with the parents.
Like I said, the photo is incredible and shows the tiny hand holding on to the person saving his life. Its a bit squeemish but at the same time, its incredible. It was an extremely rare case for a child and for this child, someone was clearly looking over him. Even if you dont see the photo, the article makes one stop and think.
Best wishes
Kev
"The picture began circulating in November. It should be "The Picture of the
Year," or perhaps, "Picture of the Decade." It won't be. In fact, unless
you obtained a copy of the US paper which published it, you probably would
never have seen it.
The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander
Armas, who is being operated on by surgeon named Joseph Bruner.
The baby was diagnosed with spina bifida and would not survive if removed
from his mother's womb. Little Samuel's mother, Julie Armas, is an obstetrics
nurse in Atlanta. She knew of Dr. Bruner's remarkable surgical procedure.
Practicing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, he performs
these special operations while the baby is still in the womb.
During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via C-section and
makes a small incision to operate on the baby. As Dr. Bruner completed the
surgery on Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed
hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon's finger. Dr. Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most
emotional moment of his life, and that for an instant during the procedure he was just frozen, totally immobile.
The photograph captures this amazing event with perfect clarity. The
editors titled the picture, "Hand of Hope." The text explaining the picture
begins, "The tiny hand of 21-week-old fetus Samuel Alexander Armas emerges from the mother's uterus to grasp the finger of Dr. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life." Little Samuel's mother said they "wept for days" when they saw the picture.
Samuel was born in perfect health, the operation 100 percent successful."
Just cant imagine what that doctor went through in his mind. I hope he had the best christmas ever and I bet he still keeps contact with the parents.
Like I said, the photo is incredible and shows the tiny hand holding on to the person saving his life. Its a bit squeemish but at the same time, its incredible. It was an extremely rare case for a child and for this child, someone was clearly looking over him. Even if you dont see the photo, the article makes one stop and think.
Best wishes
Kev
