A Gift

As a young girl in a moderate American family I grew up with the concept the sky was the limit. The dreams of a lifetime rolled through my mind with imaginations of all the possibilities I might achieve. I could be a lawyer doctor an inventor of some great need yet as life went on I am still only a dreamer. As life continued on my vision became dim as the possibilities began to fade. I was married in 1975 and had resolved to be content raising a family. This was the first reality check of my life. We were unable to have children. I have always been one who continued to dream beyond the barriers and it wasn't long and the opportunity came. A relative called one night asking if we would be interested in adopting a 4 month old baby boy. This was a shock moment for us and after a few days of contemplating the need the want and the cost we called them back. All of the details were expressed and we headed to Houston Texas to meet our new son. Being young and inexperienced the excitement was our guide. Once we had arrived and saw this beautiful brown eyed little boy we knew he would be ours. It wasn't long and we were on our way home with our bundle of joy not realizing how inexperienced we were. Once we arrived home the grandparents took over and we went through a crash course of having a baby in the house. As the days went by we went through a proper adoption proceeding and now he was officially ours to raise and to love. It seemed as though he was handpicked just for us as his name was already the name of my dad and husband's brother. Life had enveloped us into a new realm that we were quiet frankly enjoying beyond anything I could imagine. Our life had purpose and fulfillment and our vision was clear. He was our son and our vision was his.

Some might think at this point to focus only on a child and to fashion our dreams around him would lead to a denial of our own happiness but in fact he was the gift we were given to love and cherish. A child whom a mother did not want became a gift to a family wanting a child. As the years went by through school and into adulthood our vision and focus became clear as what a gift he would become. There were many days and years of joy and laughter as he grew and became a man.

Soon he was married to his highschool sweetheart and they finished their senior year together. Both graduated and set out to build their lives. In the year of 2000 they had their first child. A baby girl with big brown eyes. She was the focus of all attention and now this was our first grandchild. She was the center of my heart to say the least. My vision and dreams had taken a 360 now and the sky was the limit. The consuming love that had surrounded us now with this gift that had been given was in full control of our lives. We were committed heart and soul to our family. Our lives had meaning and purpose and all the ingredients for happiness. When you think you have arrived in life hold on when someone greater is in charge. It wasn't long and a second beautiful baby girl was born. With a melted heart of gratitude our lives were still increased. The joy and happiness was abounding as we travelled through this journey of life. Not one but two beautiful grand daughters to share our lives with was a moment of time to cherish.

On September 22nd 2003 on a very foggy morning our phone rang at 7am. The voice on the other end shaking said "there has been a terrible accident". My heart plummeted in free fall as I struggled to ask the details. Yes my son had been in an accident on his way to work. He had flipped his truck repeatedly and was enroute to the local hospital. He had a very severe head injury and was unresponsive. I frantically started to dress telling my husband the news. We ran next door waking his wife and securing the girls we took off for the hospital. I remember that day so vividly the fog was so thick the stop signs were invisible. Upon arriving at the hospital we were escorted into the family room. My thoughts immediately went to this can't be good! The doctor rushed in hurriedly explaining his current condition and stating they were transferring him to a larger hospital in Dallas. They were not equip to handle this type of injury. The doctor allowed us to go back and see him for a quick minute before he left. We walked into the room and there was my son. He was covered in blood and swollen beyond recognition. I began to pray and cry and was escorted out of the room. Once again having to collect my thoughts from all that had happened we headed to our car. We were headed to Dallas in this fog!

It was now around the 8:00am hour and the traffic was horrific! I was driving and trying to keep up with the ambulance was impossible. I came upon bumper to bumper traffic at a standstill and my phone rang. It was my friend saying take the HOV lane. Just as I looked up there was the exit for HOV and quickly I moved over. I realized later my friend by phone had given me play by play directions to the hospital. I was in shock! All I knew was I had to get to that hospital and quickly if I was to see my son again.

Upon arrival in Dallas we were told the outcome looked grim. He would have immediate surgery to remove parts of his skull. He had an open and closed head injury. His brain had been shook and fractured like an island inside. He was lifeless and on life support and may not make it through the night!

The night before this accident my son and I had a long conversation. He was telling my about something his boss had said to him. He said "you know mom my boss said the other day sometimes bad things just happen to good people". I thought this to be a strange comment but brushed it off as just part of a conversation since it had no real meaning to the context. As we entered the waiting room his boss was there and wanted to pray. He started the prayer by quoting this statement! The reality of what was said hit me like a brick wall. My question inside was "why Lord has this happened"? As the day went on and stress was of the chart within my being I continually reflected on the gift we were given. His life was constantly flashing before me as I replayed every moment to just hold on too. Every minute seemed like eternity as we waited for the outcome. Hour after hour with reports from doctors and each giving their spin on his condition my mind was in overload. Finally he reached a place of being stable at the moment and we shifted into the mindset of our next move. The girls were back home with relatives and we needed to make sure they were secure for the night. We needed to make arrangements for them for what appeared to be a long haul. There was nothing more we could do here family and his wife had agreed to keep watch until we returned. Reluctantly we left the ICU and made our way outside. We were talking with friends outside trying to make sense of what had happened. We were explaining our plan of return to them. Then suddenly the day took another unexpected twist!