It started with a sick 11-year-old kid cooped up in bed enjoying some TV, then a loving parent checking to make sure their son was okay. This was followed by a parent’s worst nightmare as their son was unresponsive and clammy. A rush to the hospital ensued, and then mayhem. Their son had gone into a coma and was diagnosed with Bacterial Meningitis!
10 days later the doctors called the parents in for a family meeting, telling them that their son would most likely die, and if he didn’t, he would probably be a vegetable on a feeding tube for the rest of his life.
The story above is mine, and the parents are two of the most amazing and courageous people I know. While I was lying comatose in the hospital, my parents were facing all the turbulence and difficult decisions that ensued as I fought for my life. Despite all odds against them, they stayed strong in each other through the grace of God, and the supportive community surrounding them.
I don’t personally remember anything during the time I was in the coma, but from what I have been told, the power of prayer and strong will of my family and friends are a huge part of what truly brought me through those difficult times.
This last month has seemed like an eternity full of turbulence for all of us, as this horrible Corona Virus has plagued our world. Many of us feel as though we have been thrown a major curve ball, perhaps not unlike my parents back when I became ill those many years ago. Job losses, death, separation and isolation have been totally unexpected and traumatic. If you’re anything like me, you might be thinking back to the beginning of March and wondering how things could change so dramatically in such a brief time.
Most of us have had our lives as we knew them turned upside down. Most of our jobs have been shut down or we are working from home. Some of you may be on the front lines battling to keep the rest of us going. Whatever your case might be, I would encourage you to take a step back from the news, slow down for just a minute, and focus on what you are grateful for despite what may seem to some like unsurmountable challenges.
As I thought about it this morning, I felt gratitude for being alive and that my heart continued to beat about 24,000 times as I slept last night. Try taking your heart rate tonight and then figure out how many times it will beat by the morning light.
I felt gratitude for friendship as I recalled a phone conversation I had with an old friend yesterday. Is there someone you might call today? Perhaps you can watch a sunrise or a sunset and feel gratitude for the beauty of nature.
Give it some thought, and you will find those areas of your life where gratitude resides. It is there you will find a measure of joy in these turbulent times. For when you can do that, only the best is yet to come!