Lifesavers for Latasha

Sometimes I forget I have scars in places that most people don’t. When I look at myself, I just see me and usually don’t even notice my scars anymore. I’ve lived with most of them for my entire life, so they’re normal for me. I know other people notice them, though.

When my oldest niece, Trinity, was a little girl, probably three to four years old, we were changing clothes in a bedroom. Maybe we went shopping that day and were trying on the clothes we bought. Or maybe it was time to get ready for bed and we were changing into pajamas. Either way, Trinity was in the room with me when I was changing clothes. Suddenly, she asked, “Why do you have three belly buttons?”

I laughed and asked her, “What?” She repeated herself, “Why do you have three belly buttons, Aunt Tasha?”

“What do you mean, Trin? I have one belly button,” I said, trying to figure out what exactly she was asking me. “No, you don’t. You have three,” she declared as she pointed them out and counted. “See? One, two, three!” she exclaimed as she touched the scars on my belly.

“Ohh,” I said. “Those aren’t belly buttons. Those are scars from surgery I had. This is my belly button. See? I have one belly button just like you have one belly button,” I showed her. I knew then she was trying to understand why my skin looked different from hers. She was too young to understand at the time, and she simply accepted what I said after I pointed out my one belly button.

When my second oldest niece, Bethany, was about three or four years old, the same thing happened. Only this time, Bethany asked, “Why do you have polka dots?” My mind flashed back to Trinity asking me about three belly buttons, and I couldn’t help but laugh again. Just to make sure I understood, I asked Bethany what she meant. She pointed to each scar on my belly as she exclaimed, “Polka dot, polka dot, polka dot. Why do you have all these polka dots on you? And why don’t I have polka dots on me?” Ah ha. She was trying to understand my scars, too. I told her they weren’t polka dots, but they were scars from surgery. I tried to explain to her that she didn’t have any scars because she hadn’t had any surgeries.

Now, every time I notice my belly scars from tubes I had in me during surgeries and recovery, I think of three belly buttons and polka dots, of Trinity and Bethany, which always bring a smile to my face.