I may never know, but there's a good chance my son swallowed a piece of plastic that broke off of a little spoon while we were eating ice cream yesterday. No bigger than the size of the white part of my pinky fingernail.
I was running out of things to be paranoid about, anyway.
So I called the pediatrician, and the nurse told me that since he didn't act like he was choking or anything, if he swallowed it it did not go into the lungs. Fortunately, as she explained, everything below the lungs gets bigger on its way down so more than likely it will pass through. I have to watch him over the next week for signs of stomach aches, bloody stools, or vomiting which could indicate that the piece has gotten caught on its way down.
My mom and I prayed for the boy that afternoon, but as I laid down to sleep I started thinking about him again. I knew I wouldn't stop worrying, so I got up and prayed. I asked God to dissolve the piece of plastic if it's still in there and restore his health. After a few minutes I got the sense that my petition had been heard, and I felt peace.
I went to bid him a final goodnight, and opened his door. It was completely dark except for a dim nightlight, and I hadn't turned on a light to pray. As I started to close his door behind me, out of the corner of my eye I saw three bright, white lights flash in a row -- pulse. Pulse. Pulse. At the first one I figured it was my eyesight adjusting, but by the third I realized something was different. I looked around -- everything was dark and still. I checked the CO2 and smoke detectors in the hallway -- normal. Headlights? No -- the blinds are closed and the door was too far shut for them to come in no matter what the angle. Burglar with a flashlight? Unlikely, since the pattern was steady and not erratic.
What did I just see? Or, what did I miss?
I went to my son's bed and just rested my hand on his torso. Breathing normal. I went back to bed and eventually went to sleep.
