The Courage of Children: Boston and Beyond XXXIII

HOLLY NEWELL
LAURA BOSSE, TEACHER
South Shore Charter Public School, Norwell, MA
My name is Holly Newell, and I had a huge problem that I just couldn’t
overcome. I wasn’t brave or strong enough. I had severe constipation, so I
couldn’t go to the bathroom right. My parents took me to a bunch of hospitals,
and what would make me feel better would be uncomfortable. That’s when
I started to realize what courage is truly about! It’s not about being a fearless
hero who takes down a red-scaled dragon to save a village. It’s not about
diving deep into the ocean or a scary cave, even if you don’t want to. It’s not
about a truth-or-dare or TikTok challenge. Courage is about doing what is
right, even if you don’t want to. Courage can be as gentle as a kind word and
as mighty as a tsunami.
Ever since I was two, I have had constipation. It has impacted my life so much.
It has made me tired and sluggish, crampy and embarrassed. Even though
constipation is common, my case wasn’t. The doctors thought it was a phase,
but it only got worse and worse. It stretched out my colon, damaging it. During
the summer, I was rushed to the ER. I had horrible abdominal pain; it hurt so
badly, I didn’t want to stand up. They thought it was appendicitis, but it was my
constipation. They said this was the most stool they had ever seen in anyone
under the age of twenty, but I was only eleven! They did a clean out, and they
thought they got everything out, but they didn’t even get half out. We did clean
outs at home, but nothing seemed to help. I missed a lot of school. I always
tried my best to keep my grades high, even though I missed basically a whole
month of school.
“COURAGE CAN BE AS
GENTLE AS A KIND
WORD AND AS MIGHTY
AS A TSUNAMI.”
fine. I got to eat after I woke up, but I was a bit nervous. If I threw up, I would
have to stay another night. I ate and got to go home!
Courage is something that builds the world a shield and helps people get
through things. Without courage, I would have been stuck like that. Courage
can change people; it changed me.
One day, things got really bad, so we called our doctor. She sent us to Boston
Children’s Hospital for a full clean out and a potential answer to my problems.
They had to stick a tube down my throat to put in medicine and give me IVs.
I was scared and nervous, but I knew it was for the best. I had to push through
the pain for a happy ending. I had to go on a clear diet because of the tube,
meaning I could only eat jello, popsicles, and Italian ice, and I only could drink
Ensure Clear, water, and apple juice. It was hard, but I knew it was for the best.
After four long days, I was fully cleared out. The doctors had to put me under
anesthesia to do some tests. I had never been under anesthesia before, so I was
scared. The tests flew by fast, mostly because I was asleep. Even though I was
scared, I realized that it wasn’t that bad and that I would get through it just
THE COURAGE OF CHILDREN: BOSTON AND BEYOND
VOLUME XXXIII
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