hospital: Browse The Strips

Monday, September 26, 2011

Lynn's Comments: I was introduced to the Lamaze method of childbirth when I worked at McMaster Medical Center. Dr. Murray Enkin was head of Obstetrics. He initiated practices which at the time were considered far too innovative! Murray believed childbirth was not an illness, that fathers should be allowed in the birthing room, and that midwives were a practical and welcome addition to his team. What was he thinking?

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Lynn's Comments: When Katie was born, Aaron did ask why she was so small. Having just pushed her out of my nether regions and with walking and sitting still a quivering thought, I told him it was extremely good engineering and that was that. I don't think I gave a full explanation until he was much older!

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Lynn's Comments: No matter what, your baby is the most beautiful thing on the planet. I remember looking at mine as soon as they were out of the chute and thinking "miracle!" Red, blotchy and crying, they are the culmination of 9 months of concern, protection, discomfort, worry and joy. They are also a grunt to produce. I often thought that if it was an easy process, we might not love them and want them as much as we do!

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Lynn's Comments: I think kids recover from illnesses well because they have such positive attitudes. When I was eighteen, I had my appendix out. Considering myself an adult, I was disappointed to be put in the children's ward. Surrounding me were kids recovering from all kinds of serious things, and all I could hear was laughter, music, and the sounds of the day. When I visited the adult ward, there were complaints, depression, subdued conversation, and an "old" smell. I was then glad to be where I was.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Sure enough, a man from Ohio sent a letter telling me that he had indeed broken his foot by lifting a heavy frozen turkey by the tag, breaking the wire tie. The worst part of his injury, he confessed, was that nobody felt sorry for him. He said that as soon as they heard how it happened, they laughed. "If I had been skiing or hiking and had broken my foot, I'd have had some sympathy!" I sent him a strip. He wrote back to say it made him feel better!

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Lynn's Comments: When I worked as a medical artist for McMaster University, one of the projects I worked on involved foetal development. I learned that the creation of one human being is so incredibly complicated, it's amazing that so few of us have serious physical problems! In this series of illustrations I wanted to address the fact that some babies are born with abnormalities. I chose a situation that was common and easily remedied.

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Lynn's Comments: I don't think there's a mother on earth who doesn't blame herself for the unforeseen things which affect the lives and the health of her children. We wonder if the things we consumed or did, or even thought, affected our babies' development. We worry and we wish and we think, "If something bad is going to happen, God, let it happen to me."

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Lynn's Comments: As a medical artist, I once had the privilege of working on a long and demanding project which tracked the development of the foetus. I worked with tiny, unborn bodies. I drew detailed illustrations showing how internal organs grew, expanded, displaced other organs, and eventually packed themselves neatly into the body and began to function. I learned minute details about the bowel, the heart, and the brain. I learned that each organ depended on the others to turn, close, twist, secrete or open at an exact time in an exact order, and if anything failed to do what it was supposed to do at the right time, then there might be a serious problem. Years later, when I gave birth to my first child, I couldn't believe how perfect he was. When you think about the infinite complexity of creation, it's a miracle that any of us comes through the process as "normal!"

Friday, July 3, 2015

Lynn's Comments: When Annie had her baby, I wanted to acknowledge those who are born with a difference. I knew this might be a controversial topic and I didn't want to focus on something which was not an integral part of the strip, so I chose a condition known as "polydactyly," meaning "many fingers." It's not uncommon and can be corrected, often very easily, with surgery.

Saturday, July 4, 2015

Lynn's Comments: When this story appeared, I received calls from editors wanting to know what the reader response was to this storyline. Many parents did contact me with stories about their babies' varying conditions at birth, and the one thing they all told me was how accepting their other children were of a new baby brother or sister who was just a little different.

Sunday July 7, 2019

Lynn's Comments: This was done just as the helmet laws were getting serious. The youngest riders were all wearing them. Older kids defied their parents' warnings and went for "the wind in their hair."

A young boy we knew well was critically injured when he suddenly swerved across the street in front of his house— right into the path of an oncoming car. He was not wearing a helmet and hit his head on the edge of the sidewalk. He was raced to the hospital in critical condition. The driver was entirely blameless. The boy’s parents were given the awful choice of surgery, which would likely result is a seriously brain damaged child, or taking him off life support. His mom said, "Let’s give him a chance." The surgery and recovery are quite a story but he survived, and with time and lots of therapy, he grew up to be a healthy and productive young man. Ironically, one of the postoperative requirements was that he wear a helmet for awhile to protect his head. It was a happy ending to a nearly tragic accident and every kid in town afterwards wore a helmet when they rode their bikes.

Wednesday May 21, 2025

Lynn's Comments: This scenario is based on an incident of my own. I was driving back to Vancouver from the interior of the province—determined to get home in one day. I tried to rest my eyes but I fell asleep and I actually dreamed I was driving. I woke up when my wheels hit the gravel on the shoulder. It was a very close call!