Reverant Day

Last night, I emailed back & forth with the mom of one of my kiddos at school.  The little girl is having surgery Monday & will be out of school for several weeks afterward.  Since this is a little more serious than having tubes put in her ears or getting her tonsils out, I fell asleep last night praying for the surgeon that will work on her Monday.

Then this morning, as I drove the kids to school, I passed the city cemetary.  I always peer out the left window as I drive by, partly out of some freaky weird morbid curiosity to see if there are any new graves (I always wonder about the person's 'story'...what was their life like?  did they know God?) and partly out of reverance for the lives lost, the families who are grieving.  It's just something I do.  Maybe it's weird, but anyway, I do.  About a year ago I guess it was, I noticed a baby grave on the far side of the cemetary, right up by the fence at the road.  A new sign then marked that section as "babyland".  I was sad to see that this fresh grave meant some family had lost an infant or small child that week.  Soon after, that first baby grave was joined by 2 more (both in the same week) and then another one just before Christmas.  I always count the baby graves as I drive past, praying that no other family has had to lose a child.  There have been four graves for the past several weeks.  Just four.  But this morning, I saw a pile of dirt with shovels layed across the open hole of a new grave.  Oh no....someone else lost a baby.  As I drove past & saw this, I said a prayer for the family who is mourning today.  I dropped off the kids and then drove back home, feeling a sense of honor that I am a mother who's never lost a child to death, and I praised God for allowing me as many years as I have had with my children.

I went onto work and then this afternoon, when I went to pick up the kids from school, I saw it.  I passed the same cemetary & there, at the new baby grave, were two men, each holding a set of straps as they lowered an itty bitty casket into the ground.  I cried as I drove to Sarah's school.  I cried for the job they had to do...I cried for the mommy who left the cemetary today after her baby's funeral....I cried for the big brother or sister who was left without a baby to hold....and I cried for my own childrens' health.  Those were tears of thankfulness.

I came home this afternoon & checked my email to find that a little girl whose health I've been following through her parents' blog passed away today.  Three year old Madeline Lester was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, a birth defect that most do not survive.  Madeline made it three years, which is a long life in most HLHS patients, but today she left her body behind & walked into the arms of God.  And so, in reading that this afternoon, I felt an odd irony between her death & that of the cemetary baby.

I don't really know where this post is headed or why I felt the need to post it.  Then again, I often post things for no good reason.  That's what a blog is about right?  Just a nice place to dump all the contents of your mind for the day, right?  I hope all of you parents who are reading this will consider the deaths I 'saw' today & go give your babies one more hug before you go to bed tonight.

And to update from yesterday's prayer request, today, my buddy's husband had triple bypass surgery.  He came through the surgery fine.  Everything went well.  He's been extubated & is recovering in ICU tonight.  Now we just need to focus our prayers on his sweet wife, my pal Kathy.  She's got a lot on her plate in the coming weeks while he recovers.  I know she'd appreciate any extra prayers you can spare.  :)