A heart touched by love

Hospital discharge papers were processed, goodbyes were said to nursery staff and Mike and Sarah Williams had been given the OK to head home to Cochran with their third child, newborn Waylon, in June 2015. After all, it had been an uneventful pregnancy and their other two children were perfectly healthy so by all accounts it was time to go home.

But there was something about the way Waylon looked that disturbed one of the nurses. She couldn’t let him go home without following her instinct and investigating her suspicions.

This persistent nurse had Waylon’s oxygen level tested. What was discovered confirmed the nurse’s fears. There was a serious problem with Waylon’s heart.

In fact, there were three serious problems, including transposition of the great vessels/arteries, ventricular septal defect and coarctation of the aorta. All of these issues appeared with no indication during the pregnancy and left Waylon’s parents stunned.

He was immediately placed in ICU with plans to be flown to Atlanta the next day. Four days later, he had open-heart surgery.

It was a grueling nine hours for the Williams family as they waited for the surgery to be finished. Much to their relief, the surgery was a success, although they learned it was the first of six to nine future anticipated procedures Waylon would need to address his issues as he grows.

After a month in the Atlanta hospital, Waylon was ready to go home for the first time in his life. And his family was only too happy to get him home.

He recovered well and enjoyed being with his sister and brother and their two dogs. Then Waylon’s doctor suggested it might be helpful if he had a dog of his own.

About the same time the Williamses were planning to purchase their pastor’s home when he and his family moved to South Dakota. The pastor had reservations about moving Cotton, his 13-year old yellow Lab who had lived at the house his entire life. He didn’t think Cotton could adjust to the cold weather in South Dakota at his advanced age.

Almost in unison the Williamses offered to add Cotton to their family when they moved to the pastor’s home so he wouldn’t be uprooted to South Dakota. Then it was time for Cotton to meet the children.

He was playful and energetic around the two older children and the other dogs. But when he met Waylon, Cotton’s demeanor changed dramatically. He was exceptionally gentle, subdued, affectionate and loving. It was as if Cotton knew Waylon was special and fragile. Cotton sensed Waylon needed special companionship and gentle protection.

Now Waylon and Cotton are inseparable. They’re best friends. They have a wonderful time together while Cotton not only loves and supervises Waylon he never takes his eye off of him. Miss Sarah says Cotton is actually a second pair of eyes watching Waylon to make sure he doesn’t get hurt.

Waylon now loves to play with Cotton and give him kisses. And Cotton doesn’t want to miss a minute to oversee Waylon and provide loving companionship. They are now a team.

It’s amazing how the love of a sensitive dog can encourage a patient with significant issues to get better than he actually believed he could. And it’s fascinating how happy Cotton is that this is his new job at 13 years old.

Cotton’s job is to touch a heart with love. Cotton was born for a job such as this. And Waylon is oh so grateful.

This story was originally published October 20, 2016 at 4:58 PM with the headline "A heart touched by love."