Thankful for good health...

So now what? Mom's healed! But there were a couple of complications.....First, Mom was not terribly excited that she would continue here on earth, her temporary home. That just was not part of her plan. Secondly, because of the administration of morphine to make her comfortable, she was now a "druggie". Yep. We had a junkie on our hands.....The whole situation was not really funny. It was confusing and frightening to some extent. We had had a plan and had been following it for almost a year. Now what do we do? As Mom readjusted her thinking and her will to understand that the Lord had further plans for her life here, we began to help her through withdrawal from the drugs to which her body had grown accustomed. Neither was a simple matter. She was really disappointed that she didn't die that day at the hospital. We were exuberant. She, not so much.....She began immediately to search the Lord's face for understanding, acceptance and some idea of the direction He had planned for her now. Meanwhile, we began to help her detox, lessening the amount of morphine she was taking each day. She wanted off of it, NOW! She went through several physical issues as we moved forward. And her days were not so wonderful. However, with the other ailments she was now facing, shortness of breath or chest pains were not on the list. We spent the next 6 months or so assisting her as she regained her health. Good days, bad days, finally more good days than bad. Now she is walking the neighborhood, feeling great, sleeping well (mostly), has her appetite back (even her love for chocolate). It's amazing. Her health is better than it has been for years. But now that she's not moving to heaven, what should her next step be? Apparently, the first step would be to put the house up for sale.....

...PRIASE HIM from whom all blessings flow!

So, at Hospice's insistence, we headed back to the doctor to verify Mom's "condition." There was one little twist. With this heart cath, she requested that if possible that they put stints in during the procedure. Well. Knowing how risky that would be, a simple procedure now becomes quite possibly a death sentence. So, somehow, all 7 of us managed to be there that special morning thinking of the likelihood of losing her. Told her goodbye, said we'll be praying, see ya in a little bit......then she was gone and we waited. As the doctor walked out into the waiting room and called for the Dean family, we all rose, walked toward the little room he indicated, tried to read the news on his face. He seemed a little amused as we continued to file past him (there were 8 or 9 kids and spouses) and find seats, that we were so concerned over a heart cath. He shut the door and began to explain to us that Mom was fine, great, in fact. There was some blockages, but nothing unusual for someone her age, he said. She could live another 20 years with that heart, he said. No reason to be concerned, he said. You're talking about Joy Dean, right? we said.....then we just sat there and looked at him.....searching, searching. This does not compute! He looked from one of us to the next. I'm sure we all looked dumfounded, because WE WERE! What? Okay. Wait....After about another 10 minutes of questions, concerns and assurances. It began to dawn on us that she was healed. HEALED! O man! Praise God! We couldn't wait to see her, and took turns going back one at a time while still trying to process what a miracle God had done on our behalf! I should let you know, at her next visit with her family doctor, she asked if there had been some mistake with the first tests. NO! he told her. I saw the test results myself the first time. I saw the blockages. They were there! Now they aren't! BLESSED! That's what we are! Receiving that amazing news was the easy part. Now what.....we had no idea what lay before us.....

....a time to be thankful, still.....

And so, we began what we thought would be a 2 month journey that turned into 10 months of agonizing. Mom began to grow weaker, began to hurt more, had trouble sleeping. The meds messed with her mentally. We began to grieve......Soon, she needed round the clock care. Some days were better than others. She would have pain attacks. Nitro would be administered, then morphine if necessary. It become more and more necessary. She made final trips. People came for final visits. It was all very painful and difficult to us, her caregivers. Mom languished. And yet at the same time, she was expectant. This would be her road to heaven and she would gladly travel it. We had precious times with her as we read, sang, reminisced and talked of the future....hers and ours.... Finally, hospice was called. They were a blessing to us and very helpful with her care. They would come by and visit and check on her. Little did they know they were fair game as they walked through the door. Every visit brought an opportunity for sharing her testimony. Most were encouraged because they knew her Savior, too. Some were more introspective..... Some days, she didn't get out of the bed. Others, she would get up, get dressed and even put on makeup. These were less frequent as the days and weeks wore on. It was excruciating to watch her suffer. It was hard to see her disappointment as she woke up each morning still here on earth. She had released each of us kids one by one when she felt confident each would be okay when she was gone. I was the last....but finally I convinced her. I knew it would be devastating. I knew each day was moving me closer to gut-wrenching grief. But I knew the Lord would sustain me. I knew His plan was always best, planned out with me in mind, handed to me from a loving Savior who would also stand by me to comfort. After 6 month. Hospice said enough, already. Now we need another evaluation done......

...a time to be thankful....

...a time to be thankful.... I talked with someone yesterday who called to check on Mom. She hadn't heard anything in a while and wanted to see how she was doing. Though I thought blogging about God's blessing on behalf of my mom would be enough to get the word out to those who knew of her situation and had been praying for her, I was wrong. So! How is Mom? She is flourishing. Simply put. God healed her heart and she is very alive and very well. Just a quick recap for those of you just joining us (and to set the stage for the miracle God sent our way). In April, 2012, Mom was having difficulty breathing after any sort of exertion (even walking to the mailbox). Her doctor sent her to have things checked out. They found several major blockages in the arteries of her heart. The placement of the blockages made it risky to treat. Mom opted (after much prayer and seeking God's direction) to have nothing done. The doctors told us she had 2 days to 2 months. We took her home prepared to watch her die. Devastation reigned. We had barely had time to regain our footing after Daddy's death. Now Mom would be leaving us, too. No matter how much we trusted our Lord, this would be a loss that would shake us to the core. Surely God had some other plan. There had to be another answer. Even so, we began our care for her. Every activity, every visit or chat on the phone, every family gathering could be our last with her. Every time the phone rang..... More tomorrow....