Lucy deVuono
EGL 101 0C1
February 4, 2012
Mod 2 Final

A Peak in My Life

It was the summer after I turned fifteen. I had never been away from home for this long. It was a three week adventure that I begged to go on. I consumed myself by planning the trip for months. It was going to be the greatest experience of my life. The trip took place in Washington, and included hiking, rafting, canoeing, and, mountain climbing. The three weeks had all been leading up to summiting Mount Saint Helen. The mountain looked beautiful; however, it is also an active volcano. The scenery is absolutely stunning during the day. There were snow covered peaks, and tons of trees. The views took your breath away. At night however it became a big scary mountain in the middle of nowhere. Mount Saint Helens is a vast place that never seems to end. My group and I made it to the base camp that fateful night to set up our site before the big hike the next morning. In contrast to the big mountain, what seemed to be very tiny, tents surrounded the bottom of the peak. We hiked all day, so by the time we got there we had exhausted all of our reserves. The 15 teenagers were mostly inexperienced hikers, but even our counselors who had more skill were worn out from the day. After we set up the tents everyone situated themselves around the fire pit relaxing. At that point the 20 of us were all dirty; we probably smelled horrible. None of us had had a good shower in weeks. There remained a certain camaraderie between us because of this. The whole group felt like we weathered this together. Even with this feeling of togetherness I still was sitting off to the side, not talking too much. Since I am a shy person to begin with, I made some friends, but even that took me almost all of the three weeks to do. A number of people came with a friend which made it harder, and I still did not really feel like I truly fit in. All of the counselors had finished their daily meeting and were now sitting around the fire with us. Noticeably absent was Adam. We didn't really think about it. Suddenly, a number of ambulances started showing up. They began setting up their own stark white tent. A buzz occurred amongst us.
“What’s going on?”
“I wonder if somebody has gotten sick?”
“Is everything okay?” Finally the counselors sat us down as a group. They explained to us that Adam came down with a serious disease.
“He has acquired tuberculosis.” To me tuberculosis seemed like an olden day disease. I knew that as a part of regular check-ups, the tuberculosis test was given, but I thought to myself; “Did people still really get it?” Apparently so. We learned that Adam had been traveling in Africa. This is where he more than likely picked it up. This was the moment when we realized why the ambulances showed up. All of us needed to get tested. I became a little worried because I know that I have had allergic reactions to the skin test in the past. I did not want to deal with having a positive reaction this time around. The nurses and counselors then made a line to the mobile emergency room tent to administer the tests. My fellow adventurers seemed to be a bit panicked. Most of us were around fifteen though, so no one had enough knowledge to be fully aware. I was more scared then the others. I did not let anyone know this because I wanted to be just like everyone else. I held in most of my fears so I could fit in. Even though I am not an assertive person, I knew it was pertinent to tell someone about my situation. I had great fears of not being able to come home because I knew I would test positive. Normally, people who have tuberculosis are quarantined. They are unable to fly anywhere because of this. I got up all the nerve within me and talked to a nurse. I of course did this on the sly so no one would notice me or something being wrong. Once I got the nurse away from the group, I explained my situation. They grabbed a counselor. The nurse told them to phone my parents to confirm my story, and explain the situation. After the phone call the nurse and Katie came to find me. They debriefed me on their conversation with my mother.
“Mrs. deVuono? This is Katie from Adventure Treks.”
“Yes, can I help you? Has something happened?”
“I am calling to let you know that an incident at your daughter’s campsite has unfolded, one of the counselors has tuberculosis.”
“Oh my god. Is he ok? (Long pause and a sudden moment of revelation.) I am assuming you will need to test everyone. You must know Lucy has had allergic reactions to the TB test in the past. It may come up positive.”
“She has told us that, and we wanted to confirm with you. It is important that she is tested regardless, but I am sure she will be fine. As for the counselor, he will be under quarantine. There is no reason for us to believe that he will not be okay.”
“That is so good to hear, but the quarantine worries me. If Lucy’s test does come up positive, will she be able to fly home?”
“If that is the case, since she has had a history of allergic reactions, she will need to be tested again within the first few days of her arrival home. Do not worry though, she will be fine to fly.”
“Thank you so much, please keep me updated.” I learned the full conversation when I got home because my mother has vivid memories of this horrifying phone call. They then ushered me into the tent where they gave me the tuberculosis skin test. My arm almost immediately swelled up. It turned bright red. This made it even harder for me to be around my fellow campers. I became very worried about how others would see me now. It turned out though that they everyone happened to be extremely accepting, and hopeful that I would be okay. In another few days I managed to get on the plane home. I met with my doctor as soon as I landed. I was re-tested. Of course it came up positive. I then went to the hospital to get a chest x-ray to make sure that my lungs had no signs of the disease. After I passed that, the doctors put me on a round of medications for nine months. I remember being so excited to go on this outdoor adventure. I had no idea what an adventure it would be. I ended up conquering more than I ever knew I would. I learned that I could be more assertive than I ever knew. I left as a shy kid that could never stick up for myself, but, I came back as a strong advocate.