when flatulence matters

last tuesday, i was assigned to care for mrs. a, an arabic-speaking old lady who had gallbladder surgery. i has been a week since her surgery but she has not passed gas, which would be expected 1 to 2 days after surgery. this has been her main problem. 

the doctor ordered a suppository and encouraged her to walk as frequently as possible. this has not been an easy task, as she is frail, does not speak english, and had a number of gadgets connected to her. 

nevertheless, i was able to get her to walk in the hallway a couple of times, with me dragging her IV poles while she set forth with her walker, with her daughter accompanying us. what a production number it has been!

after her third trip, as she was getting back to her bed, i heard a loud long sound similar to a machine drilling through the ground. the moment me and her daughter realized that this was coming from mrs. a, we started to clap our hands. yay! finally after a week!

never thought i'd be elated at the sound of a fart. but hearing this one made my day!