How do you handle emergency situations?  Me…not so well.

On a trip to the Italian Dolmites, then 7-year-old Sean fainted at the top of a high mountain pass and I screamed “Ayudame!  Ayudame!” into the faces of calm, disinterested Italians. As the guidebooks warn that the altitude can be difficult for the young or old, I imagine a fainting tourist was a common occurrence.  It probably did not help matters that I was screaming in Spanish, not Italian.  Whoops.

Thus part of our trip preparation is a first aid and CPR class for the four of us.

The hope is that between all of us, one will think clearly to act if we’re in an emergency situation.  History has proven that likely it won’t be me.

Passo Sella, Italy