Forests And Wolves

Alicia

I was driving peacefully, through the narrow roads between the dense forests. I should not enjoy this as much as I do, because I am soon going to be leaving this place. But you can't help but feel serenity in the wild. My community residency ends and I can soon become the senior surgeon I have always dreamed of being in the big cities. My parents can't be any more proud, and I can't be more excited. I am soon going to fulfill all my dreams, I am going send my parents on a world tour, save lives, and just live a simple busy life. 

I was thinking of all of these things when I saw a car parked at the edge of the narrow road, I slowed down a bit to see a pregnant lady sitting by the tree. She looked as if she were in labor. I immediately parked my car and removed my first aid kit from my trunk with a few spare clothes I had. I also removed my thick hockey stick and pepper spray, just in case animals smelled her blood and came near us, I ran to her with these things and called the hospital for an emergency ambulance. There were not a lot of emergencies here so I knew the ambulance would arrive soon, but we were quite far from the hospital, like really far, the roads here are very narrow, and fallen trees or animal crossings are an everyday problem, there was no shortcut too, and the ambulance couldn't be driven through the forest. I always pondered about why the people here rarely get sick. In the two months I have spent here, I have operated just twice. One was once an external government agent, who got appendicitis, and another was a tourist who got attacked by an animal. 

I knelt beside her laid my t-shirt under her and wore my gloves, to maintain at least some sanity and said "You are gonna be fine, I am a surgeon, I have informed the hospital, just hold on the ambulance will be arriving soon." She cried in pain, I checked her and realized that the baby was already crowning. A lot of blood had been lost. The baby would lose a lot of blood, and oxygen if the process is delayed, and even worse both the mother and the fetus will undergo fetal distress. 

"Please it's coming, help please-" She shrieked, The child's forehead was almost visible now, This was the first free birth I had witnessed.  I couldn't do anything I had no equipment. But I couldn't let that happen, I was a surgeon goddammit. I removed the scalpel from my first aid kit, dipped it into the alcohol container, and made an incision. The mother shrieked in pain even more, blood gushed out rapidly and the baby was out. I checked the exact time on my wristwatch- 16:50- it said. I cut the umbilical cord with a pair of scissors and pat its back, it started crying. She looked at the child, smiled, and lost consciousness, I freaked out. I laid the baby on a jacket gently and checked her pulse, which felt weak, too weak, I started performing CPR on her.

 28, 29, 30~ and two breaths. I must have done two rounds. When I heard leaves rustling, I saw beside me was huge, black, wolf. It was at least three feet tall from the ground where I was sitting, and Its length could be anywhere between 7 to eight feet. It was the tallest wolf I have ever seen, though I have seen animals in zoos, national parks, and sanctuaries. It stood near the baby and was sniffing it. As soon as it saw me, looking at it, it started growling, it looked at the mother and growled even more. I don't know where I got the strength or courage but I stood up quickly, reached for the thick hockey stick, and held it high up, trying to scare it away. It stopped growling and stood there. AHHH-I went, trying to be loud, and it just looked at me as if I was some idiot, it didn't seem scared and gracefully walked towards the forest. I  ran back to the mother to check her pulse, and there was none, I checked the time 17:00, and she had no pulse for the last 10 mins now.

Statistically speaking her chances of being revived now are pretty low, but I saw the little wonder lying and crying, I remember how I had to read 5 thick-ass books to completely understand, embryology, parturition, and other processes. I can't imagine how such a complex process can occur, so often, so well, I can't. Every day, 385,000 children are born. Miracles. And here I was, stripping the miracle away from its mother. I continued the CPR. The ambulance arrived in a few minutes and I went along. 

It was a difficult day.