Well, it finally happened.
After almost 70 days of school, my son Alex had to stay home because he was sick.
He sure did not want to.
One of the biggest things school provides for Alex is a sense of normalcy. His life has been incredibly complicated in so many ways. From the time he was injured at just 6 1/2 years old until this past spring, Alex was more housebound than out in the world.
Can you even imagine that?
Then school started in August, and suddenly things changed.
He was able to get out of the house regularly.
He was around adults who simply knew Alex for the kid that he is.
And most importantly, he was around kids his own age.
For the first time ever, Alex was around large groups of kids consistently and making friends like crazy.
I am glad we stayed home yesterday. (And yes, “we,” because I go with him to school as his caregiver and scribe.) He needed the rest. It was better to let him recover than push through and possibly make things worse.
I thought I would re-share something I posted before — a video I made for Alex on his 13th birthday.
You will not find it on YouTube because I have it set to “unlisted.” I wanted to make sure it was only used the way it was intended.
I originally made the video because Alex asked me to, but when I finished it, I realized how much hope and encouragement it contained.
Maybe others will not see that in it, and that is okay. We all see life through different eyes.
I have even been called negative before.
Maybe I am a little.
Or perhaps a better word would simply be…real.
The reality of this journey has changed the way I see things.
I have learned that easy was not the path set before me, but because perseverance has been required, I have also learned to depend on God more — or perhaps cry out to Him more.
I have learned that I do not write the ultimate plan.
I have learned that sometimes it is better to let go of trying to control everything and instead ask God to show me the hows and whys along the way.
I have learned to see things in ways I never would have if these challenges had not entered my life.
And because of that, I now appreciate even the simplest things so much more.
Like sleep.
I hope I can encourage others to:
- hope,
- believe,
- hang on,
- and then, when possible, reach back to encourage someone else who needs the same thing.
Hurt and suffering are all around us, and they are not going away anytime soon.
Here is something I once wrote about believing:
In the midst of the darkest moments imaginable, you may catch a glimpse of something you cannot fully comprehend, but you hold onto it anyway. You cling to it.
God tells us the battle is not ours, but His. We are told to stand firm.
Sometimes all we can do is stand…or honestly, sometimes just lie face-down on the ground…and plant ourselves in the presence of the One who can take the tiniest seed of hope and transform it into something more magnificent than any human mind could ever create.
Can you see even the smallest seed of hope?
Faith the size of a mustard seed, right?
Believe when your human senses cannot fully go there, but something deep inside tells you it is still there.
Faith.
And again, if some people call that negative, then maybe what they are really seeing is simply the reality of the journey.
Have you ever stood beside your child helping them breathe because the machine that was supposed to do it was not working?
And while that was happening, your child suddenly became unresponsive…
…in your own home…
…and you were the medical staff?
And honestly, that is one of the lighter scenarios.
That is the reality of this journey.
Alex has had a very tough eight years.
But with God, we are getting better at navigating it.
Here is a glimpse…
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