Hand of Hope....
A 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 U.S. 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. She
said, "The photo reminds us pregnancy isn't about disability or an
illness, it's about a little person" Samuel was born in perfect health,
the operation 100 percent successful. Now see the actual picture, and it
is awesome...incredible...!!!
pilgram its not hard to imagine :) because... we cant be expecting a baby in the womb offering a hand shake :D tht wud make him a special child. however making a direct contact with life in the womb before delivery is surely a special thing ... in my opinion...and Snopes rocks.... i still watch TV :P
but the picture is really sweet (even if it is true or not so)
EXlegend, Snopes said that the babies hand did not reach out and grasp his finger, rather it fell out and he tucked it back in. The baby was unconscious while the procedure was being done. Also, it says that this picture has been in many, many, many different magazines and newspapers, not just one US paper.
i dunno how relevant the actual reference of snope is here... but i guess they talking about onliners gospel ->snopes..com.. i.e. surfers who gather all from net only and rarely other media.
www.snopes.com Slapper. It's a website that tells you if these chain mails are true or not.
what's a snope?
Speedysid - weird??? Tough love??? To claiim this as God's love is an insult, cruel and an abomination to all those children who live life in pain and suffering or that have died. A God? no evidence? A loving God?? How wicked of you to say such a thing
People seriously need to check snopes before posting chain mail. Sigh.
definitely that must be a breathtaking moment for the surgeon... most probably the first such incident in history... its even a good lesson for parents
I don't know what context you have said the above, (and if its somethn personal, I don't wanna seem to be interfering).. But in general, I am surely optimistic that every life is special for God... God's love is kinda weird.. takes time to know why and how ;)
sayuri - not sad, but rather the truth
Thanks Khanan. I was about to say, not only have I seen this picture several times before, but how can they operate on an awake 21 week old fetus!
TFS...
Now, we know...
i know!it is sad :(
Sayuri - "every life is special for God" Thats a big big call Sayuri. Too bad its completely divorced from reality.
http://www.snopes.com/photos/medical/thehand.asp
Life is a wondeful gift... Sadly, many people spend it on dying...
Thanks for sharing :)
every life is special for God :) kami wa idai :)