The Protector

He always worried about his kids’ safety. It propelled him to make sure someone accompanied them wherever they went, be it school or recreation. 

Recently, he had installed cameras in their rooms that were connected to devices so he and his wife could invariably check on them. He had heard of terrible accidents involving toddlers and wanted to make sure he protected his children. Besides, the precarious conditions of the city made him even more vigilant every time they stepped out of the house. 

Unbeknownst to him though, at some point, a bacterial infection entered his daughter’s brain. Her symptoms began with a headache and fever which they tried to control with over the counter medicines. When it wouldn’t subside and she began vomiting, they took her to the doctor who suggested a battery of blood work tests. 

The results confirmed infection and the doctor administered antibiotics, fearing malaria or typhoid. 

As the doctor struggled with the correct diagnosis, pain erupted in her neck. They rushed her to the hospital where various tests revealed that she had contracted meningitis which was rapidly spreading. After several days, the doctors informed them that the bacteria were affecting her other vital organs. 

He was aghast: What could he do to help her? He wouldn’t leave her side, praying and hoping for her full recovery. Part of him couldn’t understand why, despite being with her, he couldn’t protect her. What had he done wrong? What else could he do? These questions racked his brain, so much so that he couldn’t bring himself to console his devastated wife. He had brought her to the best hospital in the city but felt completely helpless. 

He was beside his daughter the fateful day she took her last breath and left them. His tears wouldn’t stop flowing and the thought kept whirling in his mind, I couldn’t protect her. When he began saying it loudly, his mother pulled him into her arms and said, “You did what you could but, remember, the ultimate protector is God and she is with Him now. She is safe!”

He shook his head and kept crying. At home, his other children surrounded him and he kissed them. He couldn’t help but think, If I couldn’t protect her, how would I protect you?!

And then his mother’s words echoed in his mind: …the ultimate protector is God… And he fell prostrate, sobbing