Dear friends,
Is 6 weeks a long time, or a short time? In some ways, it seems like I've always "lived" in a hospital. Like bedtime medications and get well cards and the steering wheel embedded into my hands has always been my life. In other ways, it seems like yesterday when I heard the evac chopper landing on the roof of Albany Med, when I saw so many of your agonized faces out in the ER waiting room, when Laurie and Lisa held my hands while I stood over the broken body of my husband and the bruised brain of my only daughter. Time really is a plastic thing. God stands outside of it, knowing the end and the beginning, seeing it all in one piece, and mysteriously mixing His sovereignty with our free will. Try bending your mind around that one.
Speaking of mind bending, have you ever done one of those sudoku puzzles? I hate those things worse than poison! Steve loves them. He's done quite a few while at Sunnyview. He tries to explain them to me and my eyes glaze right over. He's so good with that brain exercise stuff. I fog over like London by the Thames. Of course, I was the high school student who took "Math for Better Living" once I got through Algebra (barely) and Geometry (a little better but still awful). I don't know what it is. Some people are put together for math, others are not. The accident report almost made me cry with its mathematical formulas for figuring out speed and trajectory. Good grief! I'll just stick to letters, and leave numbers to those with ultra-gray gray matter.
Stephen hopped 66 feet today! What about that guy. If you could see the effort he puts out to get from one place to another you would be inspired. At the end of the day, that leg he hops on (his left leg which has the flap wound and skin graft) is very sore and tired. It's just part of it. His walker contraption is what he uses to stand up and move forward. I'll drop a picture of it on to the blog soon so you can get the idea.
Pastor Dave the Humble paid Stephen a visit at Sunnyview this afternoon. Steve was so glad to see him! We simply love that man. He gave a beautiful sermon this morning about trusting in the promises of God. He pulled some things out of a little read book in the Old Testament, the book of Zechariah. I think I'm going to spend some time in the company of that letter Z prophet this week. Chapter 3 verse 16-17 says: "Do not fear, O Zion, do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is with you, He is MIGHTY TO SAVE. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." If you are feeling apart from God, realize this stunning truth: that He takes delight in you, regardless of where you are. How incredible is that? This is not some distant, doom and gloom god, but a true lover of our souls. Pastor Dave said what I know is true; "You can do all the right stuff, and miss the love relationship with God." That's what Christmas is really about. Religion is man's search for God. But Christmas is God's unfathomable bend to have a relationship with us. Even with all our mess. Astonishing.
So tomorrow I go for training at Sunnyview. I have to learn to give Heparin shots into Stephen's stomach. It's a good thing he trusts me. (Well, maybe not during some of our summertime water fights, but usually). Judy the Good is taking the girl for me all day so I can poke Steve in the stomach and wrap plastic bags around his legs for a shower (his first in 6 weeks). Hannah will have 3 tutoring sessions tomorrow, and my boys will groan before they head off to school. Only 3 more days until Christmas break. Hurray! I still don't have those blue candles in the windows. Maybe tonite...or tomorrow...maybe next year.
Make sure you check out the photo I posted this morning of the fantastic five who did my ramp and doors. (Tom Terrific is back tomorrow to finish the doors. The poor man thought he was retired!)
Remember, the Great One really does take great delight in you. And so do I, as I overflow with gratitude for your authentic love and friendship to me. Keep travelling with me, lest I faint. I love you dearly.
Your friend on the pilgrim road,
Loriann
Sunday, December 20, 2009
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2 comments:
The very first thing I think of when I finish reading your posts is how much I love you, then I start to get teary eyed and think about how thankful I am that Hannah and Stephen made it through. Their recoveries are the greatest miracle I've seen in a while, and whenever I start feeling sorry for myself, all I have to do is remember the Smith family and what God has done in spite of what the enemy would like to have done; that although it is a long and hard road, there is grace abundant and we are never alone on this walk of ours. We have the only wise God taking every step with us, and He has seen fit to surround us with those who He loved first as encouragers and doers for our benefit and His glory. Love you to pieces my wonderful friend. Mary Ann
LoriAnn - I am so excited for you all that Stephen is so close to coming home!!!
If you want a few pointers about making the shot less painful and minimizing the bruising give me a call or email me at work. I had more than my fair share of them also.
Lots of love to you all- you are in my thoughts every day.
--Kimberly Spath
(McGinn, Smith & Co.)
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