In the afternoon we went over to play with Barbara and Lola. I started to feel a bit warm and lethargic. When mum got me home and undressed me for the bath she found some red spots on my body. 'Uh oh,' she said. 'I think someone has chicken pox!'The next day I had even more spots - even on my face. Mum told me I was still handsome. I was feeling pretty sorry for myself I can tell you.
We weren't having a good time at home so mum took me to the seaside for a walk. She rugged me up good and proper. I enjoyed the invigorating sea air.
We read up on the Internet about chicken pox and someone said that a bath with baking soda could help stop the itching. Well, I was ready to try just about anything.
That night was a low point for me. I was so itchy I couldn't fall asleep. Mum tucked me into bed with her but not even that helped. At 11pm mum went to the late-night chemist to buy some calamine lotion. It didn't seem to do much apart from making me look like a ghost.I slept in fits and starts. At 4am Dad had a tantrum and insisted we go to the emergency room at the children's hospital. Mum and me tried to lay quietly and pretend we couldn't hear him but he just got more insistent.
We drove to hospital. Dad parked the car while mum explained the situation to the nurse. She said there was nothing they could do. Mum asked if a doctor could see me to confirm it was chicken pox so Dad could hear it from someone official.
We saw a lovely doctor. I showed her how good I am at climbing and standing up.
'He looks pretty happy,' the doctor remarked.
The doctor said it WAS chicken pox and there was nothing they could give me on account of my age. But that Dad should get checked out since he's never had it. She also politely suggested we go to our GP rather than ER so we wouldn't infect other children with our highly contagious virus.
Anyway I'm feeling much better now - even though I look like I've hit puberty early. A tip for any readers with chicken pox - chickweed cream has been a blessing with the itching.
Old wives tale say touching toilet seat is good for chicken pox...
