The Boy in the Plastic Bubble

Remember The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. It was a John Travolta movie back in the 70's about a kid who was born with an inadequate immune system and had to live his life in a hermetically sealed room, lest a common cold kill him.

In the movie, he ventured out to school in something like a space suit and fell in love with his next door neighbor. In the end, he decided living a full life was more important that living a long one. He & his girl rode off into the sunset on the back of a horse.

The story was inspired by the very real experience of David Vetter, who was born with SCID (Severe Combined Imunodeficiency). Unlike in the movie, David died at the age of 12 after an unsuccessful bone marrow transplant from his sister.

My heart goes out to him and his family. And to all sufferers of HIV-AIDS. To anyone whose immune system is not able to protect them from the invisible treats around us.

My own immune system is what they call "suppressed." I take meds to make sure it is. It has to be because it seems to be what is attacking my lungs. As a result, when I get a cold, it hangs on f-o-r-e-v-e-r and I have to be careful not to let congestion migrate from my head to my chest. I'm fighting one right now that I've been wrangling with for about three weeks. This is a terrible time of year for it what with all the Christmas concerts we have scheduled. You see, I can't sing as well as usual and sometimes, not at all. I feel like I'm letting the director down.

Granted, this is a small inconvenience compared to David Vetter's situation, but it's frustrating anyway.

Knowing I'm susceptible to infection, it's tempting to withdraw, to keep from mixing with others. But that's no way to live. I can't wrap myself in a bubble. I can't give up on having friends and adventures. And even though I'm having trouble singing right now, I don't want to throw in the towel. For one thing, the controlled breathing is good for me. And for another, music nourishes my soul. It helps me believe I'm still myself, that I can still connect with others and bring something of worth to them.

So I'm hoping you'll say a little prayer for me. Our Christmas cantata is set for this Sunday. I'd sure like to be able to do more than just "make a joyful noise."

Here's one of the songs on our program. Though this recording is not of our choir, it give you an idea of what we've been working on. Click through the ad at the beginning and enjoy!