This past week was Graduation Week. Michael graduated from Parkview High School and it was the 8th one we have attended since 1998. My sister Bevery has 4 children and with my 4, we have sat in that stadium 8 times! Each time, our extended family has flown into Atlanta to be with our children. I want to say thank you right now to my brothers and sisters and your families, for all the 'above and beyond' effort you have put in each and every time. We have been so blessed that you have come and joined in our celebrations over the years and you have set a great example to my sons about love. I know it was not easy a lot of the times for you to get here, as you have families of your own. But without fail, you have always been there in times of celebration or sorrow. What a great gift God gives the world - being family to one another. Awesome, awesome, awesome.
I admit - my trust in God was not totally complete these past few weeks. I worried about whether we would end up back in the hospital during the week of graduation. We have planned a couple of things in the past and they were side-tracked with a hospital stay. I held my breath as we got closer to the graduation. Paul had had some tough days and so, I was worried. Looking at the pictures (some of them posted on the blog below) I can see how happy Michael was and I believe God knew he needed to have that special day without interruption. It was a terrific celebration because it came and went without any problems. Plus, all the extended family got to say goodbye to those long, long graduation ceremonies at Parkview!! I could not believe I was watching our youngest son walk into that stadium. It was very emotional for me - as it is for every parent! I found myself crying in the early mornings leading up to the graduation. I realized we were definitely heading into a new time in our lives. Our home will be very quiet in a few months, as our sons head out to make their way into the world. Each stage of life brings its own set of joys and sorrows as you well know. But what I have learned is that each day is a gift and a day to give thanks to God. My confidence and trust in God has grown and while it is not perfect, it is much better than it used to be. I thank God we were able to have not only the one day to celebrate Michael's achievement, but a whole week to spend time with my brother and sisters. One more joyous event for the memory book.
Paul thrived on all the company and events. He joined in all the fun and worked through his headaches. He was able to go to the graduation, which was from 8-10:30 PM. We brought extra cars in case he couldn't make it all the way through. He had a great time and got to see some of his friends who were there. Brendan Hanrahan was the first one. Paul was very happy to see him, as he has been away at college since January. Another friend of his, Sarah, came up to our family and Paul recognized her right away. She had come to Shepherd Hospital to visit Paul. She had not found out about the accident until a month after it happened and was very sad when she heard. Paul did not remember that she had come to visit him. This last Wednesday though, he recognized her as soon as he saw her. He remembers just about everything before the accident, but has lost the memory of things in the summer before and through April-May of last year. While that is a large chunk of time, we are most thankful he has not lost his memory of all the years before. He can join in almost any conversation about the past with our family, which is a huge blessing to all of us.
He had a bit of a break-through this past weekend. He did something he has not done yet. He really lost his temper. He literally blew up and was yelling very loud. He was irritated, among other things, about the fact that he didn't know where all his belongings were. He said he had been looking at pictures saved on the computer and he noticed he was holding things that belonged to him, but he no longer knew where they were. He also said that things happen around him and he isn’t told why they have happened. On a side note, he said he also noticed the pictures at Jon's wedding where his 3 brothers were wearing his shirts! We explained to him that they did that as a way of having him with them. He said that was really a neat thing to do, but he wanted to know if he had the shirts back and where were all the things he had from the dorm? He started to get very upset and within about 10 minutes was really, really angry. He was yelling that things were happening around him without explanation. We treated him like a child and we expected him to just accept the changes going on, like he fully understood it all. He said he wanted to know where things were and he wanted us to tell him what we were going to do before it happened and he didn't want us to not tell him things, as if it wouldn't matter to him. He is not stupid and he wants everyone to quit treating him like he is. He said he would like us to include him before we made decisions and ask him if something was going to be borrowed, moved or discarded. He hated things being done behind his back.
As he started to get so angry, Jon and I tried to calm him down, then we just let him go to town. I realized he had a lot of frustration that had built up and his accusations were correct. We do a lot of things without telling him, then when he finds out there have been changes, we let him know why. We had boxed up a lot of his things last summer when we had new carpet put in upstairs and it was still in the top of his closet and out in the garage......that would scare any one... it is a real disaster area! (Closets and the garage are fair game when we have to do a ‘rush’ clean up………………smile.) A lot of Paul’s stuff from college was still boxed up and we didn’t remember it, so didn’t think about whether Paul would remember it or not.
There were things I had also boxed up the weekend after his accident. Since he was still alive, I knew I had the strength to go into his room at that time to clean it up. I didn’t want to have to do it after he died. So there were still a couple of boxes put up from that time too. Most everything left in his room were the things purchased after he got home from the hospital. Things needed for his care.
When he finally finished yelling about his frustrations, he calmly said, “Okay, now I really need an Advil”. We hugged him and said we would start that day to go through every box in the garage, his closet and our closet, that had his belongings in them. It actually became quite a project and it was a lot of fun as he talked about so many different times in his life, with each item he came across. He decided which things he wanted left in his room at our house and which ones he wanted to take to his room at Jerry’s. He was very happy when he found his music from Georgia State. He took that to Jerry’s so he could maybe teach Jerry how to play the guitar. He also asked if he could buy a new classical guitar. He had been borrowing Jon’s (brother), but since Paul was no longer playing, Jon had taken it with him when he moved to Virginia. Paul said he wanted to practice for awhile before he purchased another guitar, but he would really like to get a good one the next time. So, over the course of 2 days, we were able to finish the task of finding everything. We also were able to clean out the garage. So win-win!
Oh, by the way, Paul found all 3 shirts that had been borrowed for the wedding. Peace reigns in our home.
Paul had an appointment yesterday in Charlotte for another round of electrical stimulation. He said he continues to feel the sensation and warmth, but we have not really seen signs of the paralysis going away. We remain hopeful that God will answer our prayers for a healing. Paul has taken the advice of his doctor to start using his left eye. Yesterday, he took off the tape on his left eye for over 2 hours. He went to the store with Jon after they got home from Charlotte and when he got home, left the tape off until after dinner. He was very excited about it, but told us to allow him to decide each day when he would use his left eye and for how long. We told him that he was in charge of that, and as a reminder, the length of time each day that he used his eye would determine how quickly he would be able to get back to full use of his left eye. He said he understood that, but he wasn’t going to try to use his left eye when he had bad headaches. He didn’t want us to pressure him about it. One more step for him in gaining independence – he is now really stating his opinions about what is going on with him personally.
He is going to get his hearing aids tomorrow and he is really looking forward to that. He wants them only to help with the ringing in his ears. He still hopes that he will recover his hearing someday, but mainly just wants the ringing in his ear to stop. The ear doctor said that as many hours she wears her hearing aids, she gets that many hours of relief afterward from the ringing in her ear. She too lost her hearing suddenly after a serious illness and the ringing in her ear really bothered her. She found that the hearing aids helped stop the ringing. Unfortunately though, we were told by the audiologist that that is a rare occurrence. Paul would not necessarily find that that will happen for him. We are blessed with the fact that in Georgia, we can use the hearing aids for 30 days and if it is not helpful in Paul’s opinion, we can return them and get our money back. That is a real bonus, since they are very expensive.
We have another appointment in Charlotte on 6/14. They are going to test the fluid coming from Paul’s nostril again, to rule out the fact that it might be brain fluid. Please pray for him. Another surgery will be so difficult for him physically and more importantly, emotionally. He is only now back where he was before his last surgery in April. The last thing we need is another major surgery. It would be reconstructive surgery again, like it was in January. It took 3 weeks for him to be released from the hospital. Since he has had 3 surgeries in April, it would be very tough on him physically to undergo another major surgery in June. Thank you so much for keeping him in your prayers.
This past Sunday, Paul went with me to Adoration at Corpus Christi. He was so intent in his prayerfulness and he started to cry. He begged Jesus to help him recover from his headaches and his paralysis, then thanked Jesus for the gift of his life. He is so grateful he was allowed to live. He looked at me and apologized for losing his temper. I told him he had legitimate complaints but he said he was sorry he lost his temper about it. When it came time for us to leave, he asked me to make sure to take him with me each time. He really wants to spend more time at the chapel, where he can sit quietly in the presence of Jesus. He went to the front of the chapel and at the statue of the Blessed Mother, he held her hand and asked her to keep holding him. He then knelt at the altar and prayed silently. I knew he was in deep prayer with Jesus. I have to tell you, when we first came into the chapel, the woman who was there for the 3:00 – 4:00 hour of prayer glanced up at Paul as he genuflected upon entering the chapel. About 10 minutes later, she was leaving and she walked up to Paul and asked him to pray for her mother, who was elderly and in her 90’s. This woman is her mother’s caregiver and she asked for Paul to pray for her own strength and for her mother who was suffering. She told Paul she was asking him because she knew he was a holy young man. She said she knew it the moment he came in and the way he honored Jesus when he entered. Paul said he would pray for them both. God's hand at work.
“My Lord and loving God, You manage my life with an all-wise providence. You take care of me at every moment. If I were the only person on earth, You could not give me more attention, nor more love than You give me at present. I need not look at others, I need only to keep my eyes on You and let You govern my life. When I see You face to face, as I hope to do some day in Heaven, I will see how wise and loving You are in your care of me. Then will I understand how all-deserving You are of my perfect confidence and loyalty. Then I shall wish that I had spent all my time on earth praising and thanking You in all my accomplishments. I shall realize at last how completely I depend on You for all things, and how helpless I am without your blessing. Let me not wait until then, when the truth will be easy to admit. Grant me the grace to do so now, in my every action. Amen.”
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
What Now, My Love?
Paul and Brendan Hanrahan - It was great seeing
him again, as he has been away at school all semester.
His sister, Bonnie was also graduating, so he was
at Parkview High School with his parents.
We made it to graduation day with no surgeries
or hospital visits!! A very big sigh of relief for us all.
Paul noticed there was a clasp undone on Mike's gown -
Paul always notices very small details, which is something
new about him after the accident.
Michael, Jon, Cousin James (my sister
Mary Beth's son), Paul and Jon
Look's like you're ready to go Mike!
We gave our approval on how he looked
and he grabbed his cap and headed over to the
high school 2 hours before the rest of us.
There were around 575 students graduating and
gauging how long it took us to get our 4 sons
out of the house on time for church each Sunday -
I was surprised they only needed 2 hours to get
these students ready!
Michael - Dad and I would feel better if you
looked a bit more confident!
With your brothers by your side - you have a
great support system Michael.
James, Michael, Jon and Paul -Brothers Fidero!
Anne, Michael and Marie - (What a blessing these
2 beautiful young women are to our family!! They
help make up a great supporting cast for Michael)
Michael surrounded by 3 very influential women
in his life - Aunt Kelly, Aunt Mary Beth and
Aunt Bevy (left to right)
Michael's ready to give Lisa Hanrahan a hug.
Her daughter, Bonnie, also graduated.
Little James ran to meet Paul and Judy, as they
brought Abby and Emma over after a walk.
This picture is out of sequence - this was in the
afternoon before Michael's graduation.
Lining up for some of the last pictures taken on the
field at Parkview High School. After attending 8
graduations, I know they are ready to move on
to new events! Aunt Kelly, Aunt Bev, Paul,
Aunt Mary Beth and Uncle Jim.
Jon, Anne, James, Marie and Michael pose for one more
picture before we called it a night and head back home
for ice cream! (The graduation party was not
until Friday night since we weren't back home until about
11 PM. While teenagers have the energy to go on and
party - Jon and I don't!)
The very next day, 5/26, James turned the big
21 years old! For 8 years his birthday was a day
or 2 later than the graduation of one of his brothers
or his cousins (Bev has 4 children who also graduated
from Parkview). Only his 18th birthday was he able
to be the center of attention - since he graduated that
year!
Paul gave Jim his birthday card and a check for
$46.12. James asked him about the amount and
Paul said he was going to write it for $45 then
decided that since it was James 21st birthday,
it was worth another dollar and twelve cents!
Marie and James - he is holding a bottle of
German beer that Marie gave him for his birthday.
Cheers and HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAMES!
Monday, May 21, 2007
I'll Be Watching You
Rick, Helen and Paul handing out hot meals
to the poor in downtown Atlanta.
Paul and Abby -
After we watched the old James Bond movie,
Goldfinger, a couple of weeks ago, Paul made
up his own version of that title song, but he
called his "Goldenretriever". It was hilarious!
Abby and Emma - best of friends
James helping the Outreach Ministry deliver
food to the poor.
A group effort - James, Paul, Rick Michael and Helen
Michael, Rick (his face is always blocked!) and
Paul
Michael looks like he is having a very good time!
Finally.........Rick's face!
This picture is from Mother's Day - Paul was
giving a running commentary about each baby
outfit that had been purchased for his cousin
Becca's baby boy. What a fabulous Mother's
Day we all had.
Grandma Brown and I being thoroughly
entertained.
Jon, Aunt Bev and Michael
Paul, Jonathan and Joseph at Joseph's
engagement party this past Sunday.
Joseph started to get a complex about the fact that every time he came with Jonathan to visit Paul, it would turn out that Paul would be admitted to the hospital the day after their visit. It
happened 3 times! But not this time. Paul has had a good day today (Monday). He went to work, went to the Vet to pick up medicine for Abby, shot some hoops at Jerry's, visited with Judy and Frank and did some eye excercises. We even talked about getting him signed up for just one online class. We discussed the fact that he has headaches, but we could try to read the material to him and he could just take notes and practice that skill. For the first time, he was interested in discussing it. I suggested he start by reading through the classes that are offered and try to make that decision. He told me today that he knows everyone thinks there is something wrong with his mind, but that is not his problem. It is his headaches. But he is willing to begin the process and start trying to make a decision about what class he might like to take.
He is also going to start keeping track of his monetary affairs. He will balance his check book and will keep track of paying his 2 monthly bills. Step by step he will make his way back!
Thank you for keeping Paul in your prayers. He does find comfort in the fact that people are still praying for him. He fully understands that he would not have made it this far, or possibly even lived had it not been for all the prayers offered up for his needs. What a powerful gift - and we all thank you. These pictures are proof of what the power of prayer can do.
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
Gotta Hand it to You
We had an appointment on Friday morning with an orthopedic surgeon concerning the tingling sensation in Paul's left hand. He has had it since the accident and has mentioned it several times, especially when someone has held his hand. The tingling was up in his forearm, but is now just on the top of his hand, affecting his thumb and the next 2 fingers. He said he really notices it when he touches the top part of his hand and when he plays the guitar.
The doctor had an x-ray taken and there is nothing visibly causing a problem and he feels certain that the nerve is slowly regenerating itself since the tingling used to be all the way up the forearm and is now in the hand only. He hopes that the nerve will continue to heal completely, but that surgically there would be nothing he could do if the nerve does not. If this is as good as it gets, it is still very good because the muscles are still functioning very well and nothing is actually affected by it, other than the tingling sensation to Paul. It feels like when you lay on your hand while sleeping and is numb, and then as the blood starts to circulate again, there is that uncomfortable tingling sensation. Worst case scenario - Paul will have to get used to that feeling and work through it. His ability to play the guitar will not be affected, as his muscles are not impaired in any way. The doctor is hopeful that since it has recovered this well, it will continue to finish healing and it is just a MATTER OF TIME. (We KNOW that one!)
Friday night we got together with Rick, Helen and Jonathan over at Jerry's house to play a game of Scene It. It is a trivial pursuit type game about movies. It is played through the TV and it is so much fun. There was some intense competition going on that night. Every single Fidero son is highly competitive and anyone who knows them will agree! They were all on the same team that night and of course, won by a landslide. There was no living with them after that...........smile. I mentioned to them that apparently, SOME people in that room were possibly spending too much time watching movies!
Saturday, Paul had a good day and helped St. Stephen's Outreach ministry get food downtown to the poor on the streets. Jerry's mom, Judy, cooked all day and then Jerry, Frank (Jerry's dad), Paul, James, Michael, Jon and I got it packed into the cars to take to the church. At the church, Jerry and the boys got it into the church van and headed downtown with Rick and Helen. They delivered hot meals to 33 people and over 30 bagged lunches were handed out at a different location. There are 4 teams that make up this ministry and they are responsible for cooking, packing and delivering about 35 hot meals and 35 bagged lunches on their assigned week. Fr. Paddy started this program years ago and food is taken down to a location where a large number of people live under an abandoned bridge. These people know there will be food handed out each week and have come to depend on it. They have told the ministry members that other churches will bring food once or twice, but only St. Stephen's has come consistently each week for over 6 years. Jerry said that Paul has really been touched by these poor people and that he said he would pray for them during the week. I was so glad that Michael and James were also available to help. It is important for them to see and appreciate what they do have and to learn to share their wealth. It also kept them from sitting around WATCHING MOVIES!
Sunday started out very slowly for Paul. He had a very bad headache and didn't go to Mass with us that morning. He decided to go to the 6 PM Mass that evening. We were able to go to Joseph Tarantino's engagement party and Paul had a really good time. He walked in ahead of us and went straight to the back yard and started to visit with those he knew. He was very independent about it all. There was a woman there that I had not met before and she introduced herself to me. She is Joseph's Godmother and she wanted to let me know that she had turned in Paul's name at their church and that he was being prayed for by members of their church. She told Paul that there were so many people he didn't even know who were praying for him. He thanked her and said the prayers were working and that he needed them to keep praying!
Paul left after about an hour since he had to go to Mass. He left with his Aunt Beverly and the rest of the family got to stay for a little longer. We were very glad he was able to attend this event, as the Tarantino's have been our friends since Paul was in grade school. Jonathan was Paul's first friend after we moved to Lilburn. He didn't do well when we moved and it took him a couple of years to get over the hurt of having to move away from his dear friend Nathan Rose. Jon and Paul became friends with Joseph and Jonathan and it helped them adjust to their new schools. Later, Meredith Tarantino started to work at the same company as Beverly and I, so we have all been very close since then.
On Friday I was reading from a little leather-bound prayer book that my mother gave me a couple of weeks ago. It was given to her by a seminarian back in the early 1950’s.
Paul and I were waiting for the doctor and I just opened it and started to read.
The book is titled, ‘My Daily Bread’ by Fr. Anthony Paone, S.J. of the Confraternity of the Precious Blood. It opened to chapter 34 – Words of Consolation. Talk about timely! I always like to read those.
“ My child,
No labor, no suffering, no penance or prayer should discourage or sadden you. What you do for My sake will help you far beyond your fondest dream.
Your earthly hardships and trials are rapidly passing away. The longest life on earth is short. Only eternity is unending. Bear your difficulties, troubles and sufferings with patience. I will relieve you as soon as it is good for you. (Yes, I noticed it doesn’t say as soon as possible…..)
Whatever you endure on earth, is a very small price to pay for the Kingdom of Heaven. When you arrive in My heavenly kingdom, you will see how truly My Apostle Paul spoke when he said that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come.
Put yourself in My hands and strive to be as independent as you can of your human needs and of human consolations. Bring your joys and sorrows to Me.
Make Me your best friend and your closest companion.
As long as you go through your labors and hardships in my company, you will not find them too hard.”
I sat thinking about this reading throughout the day and did find so much consolation.
As it turned out, that night, after everyone had left Jerry’s house, Paul told me that he wanted to give me something he had ordered for Mother’s Day and it only arrived that day. He gave me a sculpture of the Blessed Mother cradling the Infant Jesus in her arms. The Infant Jesus is holding a strand of her long hair in his hand as he looks at her. Paul told me that he knows he is not an infant but that he feels that way about me. He knows how much I love him and I show it with all that I do for him. He feels that protected. He wanted me to know that and when he saw the sculpture that is immediately what he thought about. So he ordered it. I was overwhelmed with joy and he and I both cried.
The greater joy was later when I was talking with him after he got into bed. He told me that he and Jerry had been able to pray the Stations of the Cross while they were at St. Stephen’s, picking up the sculpture. He has not been able to do that in a long time and he said it was so terrific to be back in church praying like that again. He said it really helped him remember how much Jesus suffered for him and he was feeling better about all his pain. He said he needed to be reminded about it. I got the prayer booklet and read him what I had opened the book to that morning and said, “ I think Jesus had that sculpture delivered in HIS time, as it brought your suffering in line with His. And this prayer I read this morning is exactly what I think He wanted you to hear tonight.” While my earthly hands tend to Paul physically, Jesus is asking for Paul to put his life into HIS hands. And we are all called to do the same.
“My Jesus,
With eyes on You, my risen King of glory, let me go through the darkness of earth as one who looks beyond it.”
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
(Once again, I have a number of pictures to post from the weekend. They will be posted later this day.)
The doctor had an x-ray taken and there is nothing visibly causing a problem and he feels certain that the nerve is slowly regenerating itself since the tingling used to be all the way up the forearm and is now in the hand only. He hopes that the nerve will continue to heal completely, but that surgically there would be nothing he could do if the nerve does not. If this is as good as it gets, it is still very good because the muscles are still functioning very well and nothing is actually affected by it, other than the tingling sensation to Paul. It feels like when you lay on your hand while sleeping and is numb, and then as the blood starts to circulate again, there is that uncomfortable tingling sensation. Worst case scenario - Paul will have to get used to that feeling and work through it. His ability to play the guitar will not be affected, as his muscles are not impaired in any way. The doctor is hopeful that since it has recovered this well, it will continue to finish healing and it is just a MATTER OF TIME. (We KNOW that one!)
Friday night we got together with Rick, Helen and Jonathan over at Jerry's house to play a game of Scene It. It is a trivial pursuit type game about movies. It is played through the TV and it is so much fun. There was some intense competition going on that night. Every single Fidero son is highly competitive and anyone who knows them will agree! They were all on the same team that night and of course, won by a landslide. There was no living with them after that...........smile. I mentioned to them that apparently, SOME people in that room were possibly spending too much time watching movies!
Saturday, Paul had a good day and helped St. Stephen's Outreach ministry get food downtown to the poor on the streets. Jerry's mom, Judy, cooked all day and then Jerry, Frank (Jerry's dad), Paul, James, Michael, Jon and I got it packed into the cars to take to the church. At the church, Jerry and the boys got it into the church van and headed downtown with Rick and Helen. They delivered hot meals to 33 people and over 30 bagged lunches were handed out at a different location. There are 4 teams that make up this ministry and they are responsible for cooking, packing and delivering about 35 hot meals and 35 bagged lunches on their assigned week. Fr. Paddy started this program years ago and food is taken down to a location where a large number of people live under an abandoned bridge. These people know there will be food handed out each week and have come to depend on it. They have told the ministry members that other churches will bring food once or twice, but only St. Stephen's has come consistently each week for over 6 years. Jerry said that Paul has really been touched by these poor people and that he said he would pray for them during the week. I was so glad that Michael and James were also available to help. It is important for them to see and appreciate what they do have and to learn to share their wealth. It also kept them from sitting around WATCHING MOVIES!
Sunday started out very slowly for Paul. He had a very bad headache and didn't go to Mass with us that morning. He decided to go to the 6 PM Mass that evening. We were able to go to Joseph Tarantino's engagement party and Paul had a really good time. He walked in ahead of us and went straight to the back yard and started to visit with those he knew. He was very independent about it all. There was a woman there that I had not met before and she introduced herself to me. She is Joseph's Godmother and she wanted to let me know that she had turned in Paul's name at their church and that he was being prayed for by members of their church. She told Paul that there were so many people he didn't even know who were praying for him. He thanked her and said the prayers were working and that he needed them to keep praying!
Paul left after about an hour since he had to go to Mass. He left with his Aunt Beverly and the rest of the family got to stay for a little longer. We were very glad he was able to attend this event, as the Tarantino's have been our friends since Paul was in grade school. Jonathan was Paul's first friend after we moved to Lilburn. He didn't do well when we moved and it took him a couple of years to get over the hurt of having to move away from his dear friend Nathan Rose. Jon and Paul became friends with Joseph and Jonathan and it helped them adjust to their new schools. Later, Meredith Tarantino started to work at the same company as Beverly and I, so we have all been very close since then.
On Friday I was reading from a little leather-bound prayer book that my mother gave me a couple of weeks ago. It was given to her by a seminarian back in the early 1950’s.
Paul and I were waiting for the doctor and I just opened it and started to read.
The book is titled, ‘My Daily Bread’ by Fr. Anthony Paone, S.J. of the Confraternity of the Precious Blood. It opened to chapter 34 – Words of Consolation. Talk about timely! I always like to read those.
“ My child,
No labor, no suffering, no penance or prayer should discourage or sadden you. What you do for My sake will help you far beyond your fondest dream.
Your earthly hardships and trials are rapidly passing away. The longest life on earth is short. Only eternity is unending. Bear your difficulties, troubles and sufferings with patience. I will relieve you as soon as it is good for you. (Yes, I noticed it doesn’t say as soon as possible…..)
Whatever you endure on earth, is a very small price to pay for the Kingdom of Heaven. When you arrive in My heavenly kingdom, you will see how truly My Apostle Paul spoke when he said that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come.
Put yourself in My hands and strive to be as independent as you can of your human needs and of human consolations. Bring your joys and sorrows to Me.
Make Me your best friend and your closest companion.
As long as you go through your labors and hardships in my company, you will not find them too hard.”
I sat thinking about this reading throughout the day and did find so much consolation.
As it turned out, that night, after everyone had left Jerry’s house, Paul told me that he wanted to give me something he had ordered for Mother’s Day and it only arrived that day. He gave me a sculpture of the Blessed Mother cradling the Infant Jesus in her arms. The Infant Jesus is holding a strand of her long hair in his hand as he looks at her. Paul told me that he knows he is not an infant but that he feels that way about me. He knows how much I love him and I show it with all that I do for him. He feels that protected. He wanted me to know that and when he saw the sculpture that is immediately what he thought about. So he ordered it. I was overwhelmed with joy and he and I both cried.
The greater joy was later when I was talking with him after he got into bed. He told me that he and Jerry had been able to pray the Stations of the Cross while they were at St. Stephen’s, picking up the sculpture. He has not been able to do that in a long time and he said it was so terrific to be back in church praying like that again. He said it really helped him remember how much Jesus suffered for him and he was feeling better about all his pain. He said he needed to be reminded about it. I got the prayer booklet and read him what I had opened the book to that morning and said, “ I think Jesus had that sculpture delivered in HIS time, as it brought your suffering in line with His. And this prayer I read this morning is exactly what I think He wanted you to hear tonight.” While my earthly hands tend to Paul physically, Jesus is asking for Paul to put his life into HIS hands. And we are all called to do the same.
“My Jesus,
With eyes on You, my risen King of glory, let me go through the darkness of earth as one who looks beyond it.”
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
(Once again, I have a number of pictures to post from the weekend. They will be posted later this day.)
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Ride the Wind
One very long month ago,after the second surgery.
Paul was hooked up to
an external shunt.
One of only 2 fond memories
from our stay at the hospital
....this moment between
brothers and the other
was WALKING OUT OF
THE HOSPITAL!
From being hooked up to an external shunt,
to hooking up with friends at
Six Flags!
Paul and Emily - the daughter
of Ben and Cassie, who are
friends of Jerry's
Paul, Emily and her sister Claire (sitting on
Paul's left side)
_________________________________________________________________
Paul had his follow up appointment in Charlotte yesterday and it was a good thing it came when it did. He had headaches that were increasing in severity and so they ran a CT scan and it looked like Paul was on his way to over draining of CSF, which would have meant another surgery. Talk about repeat! At this same time last year, Paul had to have his second surgery due to over draining. The setting on the shunt had been at 130 prior to his last surgery in April and they had set the shunt at 80 in an effort to get the ventricle size down. It did not help that much, but it did bring Paul close to an over draining issue. So it is now set at 100. It is an issue of gauging what is the most accurate setting of the shunt and it appears they have found the low bench mark! Once they can fine tune the shunt then we can move on to other areas of concern - cause of headaches! Dr. McLanahan is going to set up an appointment with an ENT to have them test the fluid coming from Paul's left nostril. That is still a concern. In the 2 prior tests with glucose strips, it does not register any sugar, which would mean it is brain fluid. But they want to do a more conclusive test, short of a spinal tap. Otherwise, Paul is scheduled to see Dr. McLanahan in 3 months.
Today, Paul has an appointment to get fitted for hearing aids. They are wireless and he will wear one in each ear. Sounds picked up from the left side will be transmitted to his right side and to Paul, it will sound like normal hearing from both sides - he will be 'hearing' stereo. He didn't want to get them before because he said he would wait for God to heal his hearing. The reason he has now agreed to get them is because it is supposed to help with the ringing in his ears. After this last surgery, the ringing seems to have intensified. We have been told that for as many hours as Paul wears his hearing aids, he will be free of ringing in his ears for as many hours after he takes the aids out. He is ready for that to happen. He has tired of the sound of ringing all the time.
Friday, he has an appointment with a hand surgeon to see if there is anything they can do to repair the cause of the tingling/weakness in his left hand fingers. His thumb and first 2 fingers have the sensation of tingling. He said it is like after you lay on your arm and it was asleep and as it starts to get circulation in it again, it tingles really badly and is sensitive. That is what he feels in his fingers and wrist. It is why he doesn't play the guitar much - it is uncomfortable.
Yesterday, Paul also had an appointment with Dr. Matthews. After this last electrical stimulation series, the doctor said he saw some 'fluttering' in the eyelid area and Paul said he felt more than he has before. We will not have the gold weights put into Paul's eyelid yet so that he can do what is going to be needed to help his eye line up correctly. If we had been told this before, I surely don't remember it, but Paul needs to leave his left eye open and is to try as much as possible to do things with both eyes open. It is going to be very difficult at first, but the only way the other eye's muscles will repair is to have the left eye try to coordinate its movements with the right eye. So Paul worked on that last night. He walked around the house and tried to read for awhile. He did it until it caused his headache to get worse, which it will, due to eyestrain. I wish we had been told that a long time ago! Jerry, Jon nor I had heard anyone give that instruction before. We had been getting Paul to close his right eye and use the left eye for reading, but that is the only excercise Paul has done. And due to the bad headaches, it was not done as often as we would have liked. So now, Paul will need to push himself even harder and try to get the left eye moving better. He has very good function in the movement from left to right, but up and down is pretty much nonexistent. I have continued my prayers for a full recovery, no matter how long it takes. Thanks be to God we have thousands of saints that we can call on to pray for us!
This all makes me think about how it is really like being at Six Flags every day. We started out on the 'Scream Machine' which had way too many steep descents that took my breath away. We have ridden on the merry-go-round with all the repeats and now we have moved to the kiddie roller coaster - ups and downs, but to a much lesser degree. As I have mentioned before, I hate suspense. I also have never liked the rides at amusement parks. They did NOT AMUSE ME..........smile. I always took care of the younger children at the park so that I could stay on the ground or at most, ride the little planes that might go 3 feet off the ground. I am not a thrill seeker - never was. It's also very interesting to now be comparing all of this to Six Flags, because I was talking to my friend Meredith Tarantino the other day and she reminded me that her son, Jonathan, (Paul's good friend through middle and high school) had a dream in the weeks after Paul's accident. He dreamt that he and Paul were riding the roller coaster and they were both laughing and having a blast as the roller coaster whipped around the track. He said he just knew in his heart that Paul would be fine again. He has come to visit Paul every time he is home from college and he said he has seen so much improvement. He has faith Paul will continue to get better all the time. And so do we.
I do hope for another plane ride. I hope we can take a plane with Paul to Lourdes, France, where we can visit the shrine to Our Lady of Lourdes and ask Blessed Mary to intercede for a full recovery of Paul's injuries. Now that is a thrill I seek.
Tomorrow, as we celebrate the Solemnity of the Ascension of Jesus into heaven , let us remember that 'Christ ascends into heaven, not to abandon us but to be our hope. Filled with certainty before this great miracle of love we pray that through the grace of the Ascension we will be blessed iwth the ability to keep our minds and hearts fixed on heaven."
May our hearts take flight as we are filled with the love of Jesus.
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
Monday, May 14, 2007
All I Want To Do Is Dream
I wanted to make sure we completed one week before I wrote about the success we had with a little project we dreamed up. We are always thinking of ways to help move Paul along on his road to recovery. We were talking about whether he would ever be able to live on his own someday and of course pray that it will happen for him. Since he has had so many surgeries, which tend to set him back in the efforts to help him become more independent, we haven't gotten very far in this area. He waits for us to pretty much tell him what to do next. He had started to make fairly good progress before this last round of surgeries and it was disappointing to have to start over. But, something really positive has come from starting over.
In our discussions of how we need to push him towards accepting responsibility for some of his daily needs, we talked about how Paul gets so excited when he mentions how he hopes to get back to work for longer periods of time and that he wants to earn enough money to maybe pay Jerry for rent and be a roommate with him. He loves being at Jerry's house and he had even started to stay over night on Tuesdays and Thursdays since Jerry is off on Wednesdays and Fridays. (Jerry's generosity knows no bounds!) Paul always looks so forward to these nights and we figured it is because it must give him a sense of independence. He actually gets his things ready and waits for Jerry to come over around 7:-7:30 PM. Jon, Jerry and I were talking about all this and then we came to the idea about letting Paul stay over on a night where Jerry would have to leave for work (around 5:30 AM) and we would see if Paul could get himself up and be ready for Judy to take him to Mass. So we tried it and on the first effort, I stopped by to check on him around 7:00 AM as I was coming home from morning Mass. Paul was up and told me he had fed his dog, had let her out and he then was getting himself a little something to eat for breakfast. He told me what he had to do next and what time he had to be ready for Judy (who lives right next door..................very convenient). I hugged him and left and he had even packed his lunch the night before and was ready with that. The only thing we noticed at day's end was that he still has trouble remembering what time he took his Advil and he calls Jon, Jerry or me to ask if we remembered. He knows he can't take any before 4 hours are up, so he does still have to get help remembering that. It is hard because it changes each day because it depends on when he asks for the first dose of Advil each day.
That was last week that we tried the experiment. It went so well that Paul asked us if he could try to do this every day. So we let Paul give it his best effort and he succeeded for the whole week. He is never alone for very long and Jerry made sure Paul was getting his showers/shaving done at night, so the only thing Paul has to do is get himself up, get breakfast and get dressed. Someone is then with him at 8:45 AM and his day begins. He put in a full week and to top it all off.............made it to Six Flags Amusement Park on Friday night with Michael, Jerry, James (who came home this past Friday) and James friend, Shannon. It was CNN night at Six Flags, so they all got to go and get in free. Paul was not allowed to go on any of the rides, but he had a lot of fun because Jerry's friend, Ben, brought his family and his two daughters were so kind towards Paul. Paul had met Claire and Emily before and they both really enjoyed meeting Paul. So he was looking forward to seeing them again. The weather is what made the evening come to an end. A really bad thunderstorm finally closed down the rides, so they were all home around 9:30 PM. A booming end to a terrific week! Mother's Day was the most special one I can remember. The cards from the men in my life were so wonderful and each one was the perfect respresentation of my relationship with them. We went to Mass and then prayed the Divine Mercy afterwards. It was a wonderful start to the day. Then Paul told me the most amazing thing. I will preface it with telling you that on Saturday night, I woke up late in the night, around 12:30 AM and I went downstairs. For some reason I thought to stop in the front room and pray for my family. I got a pillow and knelt in front of the Blessed Mother statue (my knees can't take that hardwood floor!) and I thanked God for the blessings of my children and my husband on this Mother's Day. I prayed so hard for Paul's healing and thanked God for the success he had had. I prayed to St. Charbel, a saint I had learned about on Thursday because of my friend Lucilla. Her oldest son had died in a car crash 2 years ago on Christmas and her second son had suffered a brain injury and the ability to walk in a car accident 6 months later. She is part of our women's prayer group and they had been at my house on Thursday. She brought a first class relic of St. Charbel and told how she was praying to him for a healing for her son Gabriel. (Paul prays for him each day and sees him at Mass on Sundays sometimes. They both make a point of hugging each other.) Lucilla told me she wanted us to have the relic for a few weeks so we could pray for Paul and let him touch the relic. So I touched the relic for Paul, and also the one of St. John Neumann that we have and asked for them to pray for Paul, along with John Paul II and St. Therese. Then I went to bed.
So, after Mass on Sunday, Paul told me he knew he had slept the night before. I asked him excitedly if he had actually felt the moment of waking up. He has not felt 'sleep' for about a year. He said he knows he must be sleeping because he would not be able to stay up all day. But he never feels 'sleep'. He has what is referred to as 'seamless transition'. He feels like his eyes are always open because that is what he remembers. He is looking at the ceiling when he falls asleep and he is looking at the ceiling when he wakes, but he doesn't get the sensation of waking up. It is very frustrating for him and he always prays that God will let him regain that sensation. He hates not ever feeling like he has just woken up. So, in answer to my question, he said, "No, but I remember my dream." It is the first dream he has remembered and he said it made him really happy remembering it. Not only because it let him know for sure he had slept, but because of what the dream was. In his dream, he said he was at St. Stephen's. He said he was asked to come up to the altar. He was asked to pray for a man who was in a wheelchair. Paul knows this man by sight only and so he could not tell us his name. At first I thought it was Gabriel, but Paul said, "No, it is the older man who has black hair and he can't move because he is in an electric wheelchair and he can barely move his arms. " I then remembered the man he spoke about and so Paul continued. He said that he prayed to God to help heal this man and then Paul leaned over to hug him. The man raised his arms up to hug Paul back. Paul said it was so wonderful because the man had not been able to move his arms very much before, but in this dream the man could lift his arms up and hug Paul. Paul said it was a really awesome dream and he was very happy about what happened in the dream and the fact he COULD REMEMBER IT !
He called Jerry after we got home so he could know about it too and I called Jon, my son to share it with him. We were all really happy for Paul. What a great FIRST dream to remember!!
Later in the day, we had a brunch at our house for my sister Bev, my mother and me. It was so much fun. My niece and her husband, Becca and Zack, were there and they had a big bag of baby clothes they had purchased the day before. They brought it in to show us and Paul decided to be the commentator. He was hilarious as he reached into the bag and pulled out the outfits one by one and made some funny remark. He had all of us laughing so hard as he gave his own "Comedy Central' routine. It was a truly blessed day for the mothers present!
To end the day, my husband and sons joined me in a rosary of thanksgiving for all the great blessings our family has received this last year. I prayed for every blessed woman who has logged onto this site and included your intentions in my rosary. While I am late with this wish, I hope all the moms had a wonderful day yesterday. May God continue to bless all that you do.
May God bless everyone of you in any area you may need healing.
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
In our discussions of how we need to push him towards accepting responsibility for some of his daily needs, we talked about how Paul gets so excited when he mentions how he hopes to get back to work for longer periods of time and that he wants to earn enough money to maybe pay Jerry for rent and be a roommate with him. He loves being at Jerry's house and he had even started to stay over night on Tuesdays and Thursdays since Jerry is off on Wednesdays and Fridays. (Jerry's generosity knows no bounds!) Paul always looks so forward to these nights and we figured it is because it must give him a sense of independence. He actually gets his things ready and waits for Jerry to come over around 7:-7:30 PM. Jon, Jerry and I were talking about all this and then we came to the idea about letting Paul stay over on a night where Jerry would have to leave for work (around 5:30 AM) and we would see if Paul could get himself up and be ready for Judy to take him to Mass. So we tried it and on the first effort, I stopped by to check on him around 7:00 AM as I was coming home from morning Mass. Paul was up and told me he had fed his dog, had let her out and he then was getting himself a little something to eat for breakfast. He told me what he had to do next and what time he had to be ready for Judy (who lives right next door..................very convenient). I hugged him and left and he had even packed his lunch the night before and was ready with that. The only thing we noticed at day's end was that he still has trouble remembering what time he took his Advil and he calls Jon, Jerry or me to ask if we remembered. He knows he can't take any before 4 hours are up, so he does still have to get help remembering that. It is hard because it changes each day because it depends on when he asks for the first dose of Advil each day.
That was last week that we tried the experiment. It went so well that Paul asked us if he could try to do this every day. So we let Paul give it his best effort and he succeeded for the whole week. He is never alone for very long and Jerry made sure Paul was getting his showers/shaving done at night, so the only thing Paul has to do is get himself up, get breakfast and get dressed. Someone is then with him at 8:45 AM and his day begins. He put in a full week and to top it all off.............made it to Six Flags Amusement Park on Friday night with Michael, Jerry, James (who came home this past Friday) and James friend, Shannon. It was CNN night at Six Flags, so they all got to go and get in free. Paul was not allowed to go on any of the rides, but he had a lot of fun because Jerry's friend, Ben, brought his family and his two daughters were so kind towards Paul. Paul had met Claire and Emily before and they both really enjoyed meeting Paul. So he was looking forward to seeing them again. The weather is what made the evening come to an end. A really bad thunderstorm finally closed down the rides, so they were all home around 9:30 PM. A booming end to a terrific week! Mother's Day was the most special one I can remember. The cards from the men in my life were so wonderful and each one was the perfect respresentation of my relationship with them. We went to Mass and then prayed the Divine Mercy afterwards. It was a wonderful start to the day. Then Paul told me the most amazing thing. I will preface it with telling you that on Saturday night, I woke up late in the night, around 12:30 AM and I went downstairs. For some reason I thought to stop in the front room and pray for my family. I got a pillow and knelt in front of the Blessed Mother statue (my knees can't take that hardwood floor!) and I thanked God for the blessings of my children and my husband on this Mother's Day. I prayed so hard for Paul's healing and thanked God for the success he had had. I prayed to St. Charbel, a saint I had learned about on Thursday because of my friend Lucilla. Her oldest son had died in a car crash 2 years ago on Christmas and her second son had suffered a brain injury and the ability to walk in a car accident 6 months later. She is part of our women's prayer group and they had been at my house on Thursday. She brought a first class relic of St. Charbel and told how she was praying to him for a healing for her son Gabriel. (Paul prays for him each day and sees him at Mass on Sundays sometimes. They both make a point of hugging each other.) Lucilla told me she wanted us to have the relic for a few weeks so we could pray for Paul and let him touch the relic. So I touched the relic for Paul, and also the one of St. John Neumann that we have and asked for them to pray for Paul, along with John Paul II and St. Therese. Then I went to bed.
So, after Mass on Sunday, Paul told me he knew he had slept the night before. I asked him excitedly if he had actually felt the moment of waking up. He has not felt 'sleep' for about a year. He said he knows he must be sleeping because he would not be able to stay up all day. But he never feels 'sleep'. He has what is referred to as 'seamless transition'. He feels like his eyes are always open because that is what he remembers. He is looking at the ceiling when he falls asleep and he is looking at the ceiling when he wakes, but he doesn't get the sensation of waking up. It is very frustrating for him and he always prays that God will let him regain that sensation. He hates not ever feeling like he has just woken up. So, in answer to my question, he said, "No, but I remember my dream." It is the first dream he has remembered and he said it made him really happy remembering it. Not only because it let him know for sure he had slept, but because of what the dream was. In his dream, he said he was at St. Stephen's. He said he was asked to come up to the altar. He was asked to pray for a man who was in a wheelchair. Paul knows this man by sight only and so he could not tell us his name. At first I thought it was Gabriel, but Paul said, "No, it is the older man who has black hair and he can't move because he is in an electric wheelchair and he can barely move his arms. " I then remembered the man he spoke about and so Paul continued. He said that he prayed to God to help heal this man and then Paul leaned over to hug him. The man raised his arms up to hug Paul back. Paul said it was so wonderful because the man had not been able to move his arms very much before, but in this dream the man could lift his arms up and hug Paul. Paul said it was a really awesome dream and he was very happy about what happened in the dream and the fact he COULD REMEMBER IT !
He called Jerry after we got home so he could know about it too and I called Jon, my son to share it with him. We were all really happy for Paul. What a great FIRST dream to remember!!
Later in the day, we had a brunch at our house for my sister Bev, my mother and me. It was so much fun. My niece and her husband, Becca and Zack, were there and they had a big bag of baby clothes they had purchased the day before. They brought it in to show us and Paul decided to be the commentator. He was hilarious as he reached into the bag and pulled out the outfits one by one and made some funny remark. He had all of us laughing so hard as he gave his own "Comedy Central' routine. It was a truly blessed day for the mothers present!
To end the day, my husband and sons joined me in a rosary of thanksgiving for all the great blessings our family has received this last year. I prayed for every blessed woman who has logged onto this site and included your intentions in my rosary. While I am late with this wish, I hope all the moms had a wonderful day yesterday. May God continue to bless all that you do.
May God bless everyone of you in any area you may need healing.
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Picture This
Paul and Abby - the day he got home from the hospital
Judy let Paul know just how much he was missed !
(Frank was next in line to welcome him home, while
Emma looked on)
We couldn't quit hugging Paul that first evening he was home.
We were all so happy to be back in Lilburn, enjoying NON-hospital food.
I am sorry about the late postings of the pictures! I have been taught how to get them into the format that this blog site accepts. Hopefully, I can post pictures more often. I knew how to download the pictures with my old camera and the newer one hasn't been as easy for me.
New and Improved these days only means more technology to learn for me!
The banner goes up to announce Michael's graduation.
Great job guys. We have completed our task of totally embarassing Michael.
For Jon and I, we have completed our task of getting 4 sons through high school. You can bet
we want to celebrate that accomplishment. Seeing Paul help Jon get this sign up pretty much makes this a Banner Year!
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
Called By Name
HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY
DEAREST JON !!!
_______________________________
Yesterday morning at Mass, a friend mentioned that a local high school student was involved in a serious car accident and was thrown from the vehicle and had suffered a serious brain injury. He was in critical condition at the same hospital where they had taken Paul after his accident. I could picture how crowded the waiting room and hallways around the waiting room would be. I thought about the family all through Mass and on my way home. Paul was awake when I checked in on him and I mentioned what happened to yet another young man. Paul said he had seen the headline in the newspaper, but didn't read it. He didn't want to know the details, but he would remember the name as he prayed. Paul was laying on his bed and I sat down beside him. He was staring at the ceiling and we sat there quietly for a few moments. Then, very gently he said just one word..........."Mom". I cannot really explain it in words but the softness of his voice and the loving tone in which he said it made it stand out like never before. In the few seconds between hearing it and my responding, I had an instant flash of how beautiful it sounded - how wonderful it was to hear him say my name and then I flashed on how much the mother of that young man (his name is Daniel) would love to hear her own son be able to mouth that word......."MOM". I could imagine her at his bedside, holding his hand and watching his face for some sign of consciousness, for him to open his eyes and look at her. He would not even have to speak the word, his eyes would say it for him. Just like Paul did when he first woke.
I answered Paul with "What dearest?" He kept staring at the ceiling, off in deep thought and he finally asked very gently, "When will I be free from my head pain?" My only answer was the same as always, "When God is finished with His plan. He has called you by name Paul and He needs you to do this for as long as it takes for Him to finish His work." Paul just nodded and then said, "Okay, I'll wait."
Today's reading is about the vines and branches. Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. If necessary, God will prune the branches so they will bear more fruit. I smiled as I thought about how we've been pruned! It is a way that God tends to us, and before a branch dies, God will 'prune' it in an effort to save it, as explained in today's homily. We need not be afraid of getting 'clipped'. We can be "certain that nothing will happen to us that we cannotuse as a source of the greatest good for His glory and the sanctification of ourselves and others, ad that everything that happens is either willed or permitted by Him and that therefore, far from lying under the shadow of fear, we have only to say, "Whatever happens - God be praised!" (Venerable Charles de Foucauld) Yes, come out of the shadows and let the sun shine on the branch, so it will bear much fruit.
We are called by name, each and every one of us. As beautiful the sound of a son or daughter saying "Mom" or "Dad", the sound of God calling us "Son" or "Daughter" is infinitely more magnificent.
And I want to say to my son, JON....................Happy and blessed 25th birthday to you!! You have brought more joy and love into our lives these past 25 years than we can express in this posting! You are a most beautiful gift from God and we will rejoice in this day the Lord has made. God bless you always.
Happy birthday to our most devoted commentor on this blog.........KATIE ! You are a shining star! God bless you too.
Our prayers were answered yesterday in that Paul had one of the best days he has had since he came home a few weeks ago. He got his dog fed, got ready for Mass and work, without prompting. Later, he and Judy walked the dogs for a mile. While I was cooking, Paul, Jon and I were playing card games and we had so much fun. Then Paul visited with our neighbors Bob and Barb and then went to Jerry's to spend the night, since Jerry has Wednesday's off. It was a very full day and we are hoping that this will continue to be the trend for Paul. Getting him back on track will be terrific. It is slow going, but as long as we trend up, we are most happy. It seems like we are on a merry-go-round in that we have to keep starting the recovery process over, but my niece Sarah sent me pictures of Paul comparing him to one year ago and last month and it is remarkable how much progress he has made. The recovery this time around was slower because of the air pockets allowed into the ventricles and also having 3 surgeries in 2 weeks. That's a lot of anesthesia for the body to get out of its system!
"I am the vine, you are the brances. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing." (Jn 15:5)
May we always bear fruit for the glory of God,
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
I answered Paul with "What dearest?" He kept staring at the ceiling, off in deep thought and he finally asked very gently, "When will I be free from my head pain?" My only answer was the same as always, "When God is finished with His plan. He has called you by name Paul and He needs you to do this for as long as it takes for Him to finish His work." Paul just nodded and then said, "Okay, I'll wait."
Today's reading is about the vines and branches. Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. If necessary, God will prune the branches so they will bear more fruit. I smiled as I thought about how we've been pruned! It is a way that God tends to us, and before a branch dies, God will 'prune' it in an effort to save it, as explained in today's homily. We need not be afraid of getting 'clipped'. We can be "certain that nothing will happen to us that we cannotuse as a source of the greatest good for His glory and the sanctification of ourselves and others, ad that everything that happens is either willed or permitted by Him and that therefore, far from lying under the shadow of fear, we have only to say, "Whatever happens - God be praised!" (Venerable Charles de Foucauld) Yes, come out of the shadows and let the sun shine on the branch, so it will bear much fruit.
We are called by name, each and every one of us. As beautiful the sound of a son or daughter saying "Mom" or "Dad", the sound of God calling us "Son" or "Daughter" is infinitely more magnificent.
And I want to say to my son, JON....................Happy and blessed 25th birthday to you!! You have brought more joy and love into our lives these past 25 years than we can express in this posting! You are a most beautiful gift from God and we will rejoice in this day the Lord has made. God bless you always.
Happy birthday to our most devoted commentor on this blog.........KATIE ! You are a shining star! God bless you too.
Our prayers were answered yesterday in that Paul had one of the best days he has had since he came home a few weeks ago. He got his dog fed, got ready for Mass and work, without prompting. Later, he and Judy walked the dogs for a mile. While I was cooking, Paul, Jon and I were playing card games and we had so much fun. Then Paul visited with our neighbors Bob and Barb and then went to Jerry's to spend the night, since Jerry has Wednesday's off. It was a very full day and we are hoping that this will continue to be the trend for Paul. Getting him back on track will be terrific. It is slow going, but as long as we trend up, we are most happy. It seems like we are on a merry-go-round in that we have to keep starting the recovery process over, but my niece Sarah sent me pictures of Paul comparing him to one year ago and last month and it is remarkable how much progress he has made. The recovery this time around was slower because of the air pockets allowed into the ventricles and also having 3 surgeries in 2 weeks. That's a lot of anesthesia for the body to get out of its system!
"I am the vine, you are the brances. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing." (Jn 15:5)
May we always bear fruit for the glory of God,
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
Monday, May 07, 2007
On The Border
I read a couple of weeks ago that the Catholic Church has said that there is no longer the belief that there is limbo, which is the latin term for border or edge. It was believed that all babies who were not baptized would go to limbo when they died. It was a place where one would not be in heaven exactly and most definitely one was not in hell.
This morning I had my doubts - I thought to myself, "No limbo? Oh there's a limbo baby and we are in it!" I will preface this with the fact that I got as much sleep last night as a mother with a newborn...................God bless all you very young mothers out there. It is hard work and I got a repeat lesson last night.
It was a really big surprise for Paul to get a visit from his childhood friend, Nathan Rose. They played Nintendo on the newest system out there. Paul stayed up really late and he had a terrific time. It was around 11-11:30 when Paul went to bed. At 12:30, Paul woke me up to let me know his head was hurting badly and he could not go to sleep. He had not had any naps during the day, so I figured he would really sleep well during the night, especially since he had been up with Nathan so late. But he said that he had been sitting at his computer for the last hour and needed pain/sleep medicine. I fell back asleep and he was up again at 2:30, head still hurting and unable to sleep. I told him that he had to wait 2 more hours before he could take anything else. I could not go back to sleep, as I was worried about his headache. I could hear him and he also did not go to sleep. At 4:14 AM he came in and asked if he could have an Advil. I told him to take some Tylenol PM and see if it would help him sleep. I sat on the side of his bed and rubbed his back for a little bit and I heard him whisper a prayer, "Please, Father in heaven, just let me sleep." He finally fell asleep. I only slept for another hour, then Jon got up and shortly after that, Michael got up. I don't know why it is, but on the very morning I needed them to be quiet, it sounded like there were 2 elephants in our house! They finally left at 7 AM and were followed by the trash truck coming down the street. I checked in on Paul and miraculously he was still sleeping. At 7:30 he got up for a little bit, but went back to bed. I know he was exhausted, because I was sharing the feeling.........
I sat downstairs with a strong cup of coffee and was thinking I needed to update the blog. That is when I thought to myself that there sure as heck was a limbo. While we have made some great progress with Paul, we are no further along with the issue of his debilitating headaches than before. Every day I ask him how he is doing and everyday I get his response - "Can I have something for my headache?" On his good days, he still has a headache, but it is just down to a level 3 or 4. We haven't seen that happen in a while though. His headaches are mostly in the 5-6 range since his last surgery. He goes to another doctor appointment in Charlotte next Tuesday. I used to have such high hopes when it came time to go to Charlotte. I would think that just maybe they would come up with the solution. But let me tell you - limbo can whittle away at hope. I still have hope and I work hard everyday to keep it alive. But it isn't easy in this limbo kind of life. We have been on a long journey - one that we measured in terms of walking to California. Well, we are at a 'border' crossing and apparently, we don't have the correct paperwork...........smile. In my exhausted state of mind this morning, I felt kind of depressed about how we now have to start over with Paul's physical training, and we have to try to schedule another appointment (that I pray we finally get to keep) with Shepherd Pathways and we have to start over with getting Paul on a routine. Since the last surgery, Paul has had the hardest time getting his old schedule back. He has not been able to get up in the mornings in time for Mass, and doesn't get to work as often or for as many hours. It seems so hit and miss these days. I am sure that it is because his body is still in the very slow process of recovering from the 3 surgeries they did in 2 weeks. I heard that it takes double the time to recover for brain injured patients. There is a true statement for you! We have started over so often, but at least we aren't starting from the VERY beginning - Praise be to God and Amen too!
So how do I find my hope today? From the long list God has provided.
-The bright morning sunshine filtering through the trees into my bedroom.
-The birds singing loud enough to wake Paul.
-The thought of how Jesus will hug us as we enter heaven. Help me get there Lord!
he knowledge that life does move forward and that if we may be in an earthly limbo now, it is not forever.
-God's love is forever.
-There are others who suffer far worse than we do - every hour of every day. Our cross is light.
-I was graced with life again today. Time to take a deep breath!
-I have a busy life to tend to and I have the physical/mental well being to do it. (Okay - maybe not all the physical well being.............I tended the gardens yesterday and can hardly move!)
-I got to send angels to my husband, sons and all my brothers and sisters in Christ through my prayers.
It took centuries for the Catholic Church to state that there is no limbo. Time for me to get out of that state of mind and set about finding a way to 'cross the border'.
Paul has been slowed down since his last surgeries and he has lost some of his hope about who well he will recover. His speech is more slurred, but he does recognize it and will correct himself. He hasn't really gotten his appetite back, but his weight is still good and he is not losing weight. He seems more foggy than before, in that he doesn't remember things from earlier in the day as well. Once we talk about it, then he will say, "Oh yeah, I remember now." I don't know how long it will take to get back to baseline, but I am sure we will get him there again. As we watch his hair grow, we start to wonder just how long it will grow before the next surgery! He even said it one day after looking in the mirror. He said, "Yep, it looks like it's about time for surgery again." Our hope and prayer is that he will be able to get a normal haircut this next time - and not the buzz job..........Keep the hope alive!
Last night I asked Paul how well he did playing Nintendo. He laughed out loud and said, "I pretty much stunk. I could not do it as well as I used to, but it was fun seeing Nathan." I was glad to see that he wasn't feeling sorry for himself. He had been somewhat depressed this past weekend about all the things he has lost. I reminded him that he was naming only the earthly things, not the things that mattered. He had a new and beautiful faith in God and it would be that wonderful gift from God that would help him gain all that was willed by God for him in his future. He always finds immediate comfort in that knowledge, once he is reminded. It is an everlasting gift, to be sure.
We are in the 18th month of recovery. California here we come!
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
This morning I had my doubts - I thought to myself, "No limbo? Oh there's a limbo baby and we are in it!" I will preface this with the fact that I got as much sleep last night as a mother with a newborn...................God bless all you very young mothers out there. It is hard work and I got a repeat lesson last night.
It was a really big surprise for Paul to get a visit from his childhood friend, Nathan Rose. They played Nintendo on the newest system out there. Paul stayed up really late and he had a terrific time. It was around 11-11:30 when Paul went to bed. At 12:30, Paul woke me up to let me know his head was hurting badly and he could not go to sleep. He had not had any naps during the day, so I figured he would really sleep well during the night, especially since he had been up with Nathan so late. But he said that he had been sitting at his computer for the last hour and needed pain/sleep medicine. I fell back asleep and he was up again at 2:30, head still hurting and unable to sleep. I told him that he had to wait 2 more hours before he could take anything else. I could not go back to sleep, as I was worried about his headache. I could hear him and he also did not go to sleep. At 4:14 AM he came in and asked if he could have an Advil. I told him to take some Tylenol PM and see if it would help him sleep. I sat on the side of his bed and rubbed his back for a little bit and I heard him whisper a prayer, "Please, Father in heaven, just let me sleep." He finally fell asleep. I only slept for another hour, then Jon got up and shortly after that, Michael got up. I don't know why it is, but on the very morning I needed them to be quiet, it sounded like there were 2 elephants in our house! They finally left at 7 AM and were followed by the trash truck coming down the street. I checked in on Paul and miraculously he was still sleeping. At 7:30 he got up for a little bit, but went back to bed. I know he was exhausted, because I was sharing the feeling.........
I sat downstairs with a strong cup of coffee and was thinking I needed to update the blog. That is when I thought to myself that there sure as heck was a limbo. While we have made some great progress with Paul, we are no further along with the issue of his debilitating headaches than before. Every day I ask him how he is doing and everyday I get his response - "Can I have something for my headache?" On his good days, he still has a headache, but it is just down to a level 3 or 4. We haven't seen that happen in a while though. His headaches are mostly in the 5-6 range since his last surgery. He goes to another doctor appointment in Charlotte next Tuesday. I used to have such high hopes when it came time to go to Charlotte. I would think that just maybe they would come up with the solution. But let me tell you - limbo can whittle away at hope. I still have hope and I work hard everyday to keep it alive. But it isn't easy in this limbo kind of life. We have been on a long journey - one that we measured in terms of walking to California. Well, we are at a 'border' crossing and apparently, we don't have the correct paperwork...........smile. In my exhausted state of mind this morning, I felt kind of depressed about how we now have to start over with Paul's physical training, and we have to try to schedule another appointment (that I pray we finally get to keep) with Shepherd Pathways and we have to start over with getting Paul on a routine. Since the last surgery, Paul has had the hardest time getting his old schedule back. He has not been able to get up in the mornings in time for Mass, and doesn't get to work as often or for as many hours. It seems so hit and miss these days. I am sure that it is because his body is still in the very slow process of recovering from the 3 surgeries they did in 2 weeks. I heard that it takes double the time to recover for brain injured patients. There is a true statement for you! We have started over so often, but at least we aren't starting from the VERY beginning - Praise be to God and Amen too!
So how do I find my hope today? From the long list God has provided.
-The bright morning sunshine filtering through the trees into my bedroom.
-The birds singing loud enough to wake Paul.
-The thought of how Jesus will hug us as we enter heaven. Help me get there Lord!
he knowledge that life does move forward and that if we may be in an earthly limbo now, it is not forever.
-God's love is forever.
-There are others who suffer far worse than we do - every hour of every day. Our cross is light.
-I was graced with life again today. Time to take a deep breath!
-I have a busy life to tend to and I have the physical/mental well being to do it. (Okay - maybe not all the physical well being.............I tended the gardens yesterday and can hardly move!)
-I got to send angels to my husband, sons and all my brothers and sisters in Christ through my prayers.
It took centuries for the Catholic Church to state that there is no limbo. Time for me to get out of that state of mind and set about finding a way to 'cross the border'.
Paul has been slowed down since his last surgeries and he has lost some of his hope about who well he will recover. His speech is more slurred, but he does recognize it and will correct himself. He hasn't really gotten his appetite back, but his weight is still good and he is not losing weight. He seems more foggy than before, in that he doesn't remember things from earlier in the day as well. Once we talk about it, then he will say, "Oh yeah, I remember now." I don't know how long it will take to get back to baseline, but I am sure we will get him there again. As we watch his hair grow, we start to wonder just how long it will grow before the next surgery! He even said it one day after looking in the mirror. He said, "Yep, it looks like it's about time for surgery again." Our hope and prayer is that he will be able to get a normal haircut this next time - and not the buzz job..........Keep the hope alive!
Last night I asked Paul how well he did playing Nintendo. He laughed out loud and said, "I pretty much stunk. I could not do it as well as I used to, but it was fun seeing Nathan." I was glad to see that he wasn't feeling sorry for himself. He had been somewhat depressed this past weekend about all the things he has lost. I reminded him that he was naming only the earthly things, not the things that mattered. He had a new and beautiful faith in God and it would be that wonderful gift from God that would help him gain all that was willed by God for him in his future. He always finds immediate comfort in that knowledge, once he is reminded. It is an everlasting gift, to be sure.
We are in the 18th month of recovery. California here we come!
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
I Want To Hold Your Hand
Last weekend, Paul and Jerry went to the 5 PM Mass along with Jerry's parents. Aunt Bev and Uncle Joe were also there. They got a real surprise when Fr. Kevin Peek was the celebrant of the Mass, as Fr. Paddy has been in Ireland to care for his sister. Paul got to visit with Fr. Peek and was told to pray for a young man who was on the bus that had a tragic accident here in Atlanta a month or so ago. Paul came home and told us to pray for Tim Burton, who was seriously injured and his parents are still in town with him at the hospital. It put our stay in Charlotte those 3 weeks into perspective. Thanks be to God for our very light load.
Jon and I went to the 8:30 AM Mass like usual. We didn't have our cell phones with us, so we weren't going to stay after Mass to have coffee. As we were walking out, I told Jon I was going to just dash back to the kitchen and grab a cup of coffee, as I really like the coffee they serve. When we got back there, we saw our friend Rick and we stopped to just say hello and then leave. As I was talking to Rick, I noticed that a woman who was sitting at the table with her husband looked familiar to me. I kept trying to remember and then it hit me. She was the wonderful person who came up to me after a morning mass and had handed me a bottle of Lourdes Holy Water. I went to her and said that I remembered this very kind deed and introduced myself. She said her name was Marie (easy name for me to remember!!) and that she had been at a healing Mass and my face came to her mind. She then asked for an extra bottle of the Lourdes water and waited until she next saw me and gave it to me. As we were talking, I learned that she is the mother of one of the students I had in the youth group when I was Youth Group Minister at St. Stephen's! In fact, she was the mother of a very dear friend of Paul's named Danny. Danny had been to our house hundreds of times over the years and I was just now meeting his mother! She told me that had a child who died at only 9 months old and that she understood our suffering. I told her that we probably had not suffered as much as she had, since our son was still here with us. I held her hands and thanked her so much for her prayers and thoughtfulness in bringing us the Holy Water. She told me that she learned how to be joyful in her suffering through someone she knew who had accepted with great joy a life filled with suffering. Marie told me that anytime she felt such sorrow, she would think of this woman who was such a huge inspiration for her and she would turn her sorrow into joy and would thank God for the suffering He had allowed. I told her that that was exactly what I had been spending time contemplating these past few weeks. I was trying to remember to thank God with a joyful heart for the gift of suffering and to truly view it as a gift from God. I went home and was so excited when I told Paul who I had met.
Paul had a great Friday - he went on a mile walk with Jerry and their dogs, he went out to eat with the Hufford family and also Jerry's aunt and uncle. He stayed up until midnight with us as we all enjoyed a "night out at the movies" at Jerry's and he had an active Saturday. He started to go downhill around 1 PM on Sunday and had really bad headaches. They were ranging around the 6.5 mark. He was taking Advil every 4 hours. I stayed home with him on Monday too, as he was in a lot of pain again. He woke up around 3:48 AM today and I was already awake (I guess God wanted me to pray the Divine Mercy, because I woke at 3:15 and was wide awake and immediately thought of that prayer). Paul wanted to get some pain medicine. I told him to wait in his room and I would go get it. He said he wanted to walk downstairs to see if being up would help him at all (as it had a couple of times before). So we went downstairs and we were standing in the dark in the kitchen. I didn't turn on lights as I know it hurts his head.
He stood there and was very upset his head was hurting and he said that maybe with the next surgery, they could just 'remove' his brain so that he would be done with the pain. I thought of Marie's advice about how she tried to deal with her emotional pain and I told Paul that we should stop and thank God for the opportunity to serve Him and for the gift of this pain and suffering. I reminded him that God knows how bad Paul hurts, but we should try to be thankful in all things. He said that was a good idea, and he took my hand and asked me to pray with him. I came up with the idea that while we prayed, we should imagine we were also holding the hands of Jesus and to place ourselves in his presence. I told Paul to picture how Jesus's face would look when Paul went home to heaven and he was able to hear the words, "Well done my faithful servant." Paul then started to pray out loud to Jesus. He had prayed for only about 45 seconds and then he stopped and got very choked up. He was crying and he looked at me and said, "I just felt the hand of Jesus. He was touching my hand and he squeezed my hand like this" and he showed me how it felt. I started to cry also, because there was so much joy in Paul's voice when he told me this. I said, "See! Jesus is letting you know that that is exactly what he wants from you. Always thank Him for everything, no matter what the circumstance and find joy in it.
Paul hugged me so tightly and then said he wanted to go back upstairs to try to get some sleep. As we walked back up the stairs, I laughingly asked him if he was going to wash that hand ever again? He said, "Maybe in 6 months!". I blessed him and prayed that God would allow him to at the very least get a very restful night's sleep.
Last Sunday, I had my Magnificat with me, only it was the one for May. I placed the ribbons to mark the first day. Tuesday, May 1st. I read all the introductory parts before Mass. I thought to myself that I was going to make a very conscientious effort to make Mass every day that I could in May, since it was the month of Mary. So, this morning, I got up and hurried out the door. I didn't have time to see Jon to tell him of the occurrence during the night. I got to church and sat down next to him. I opened my prayer book to the marked page that I had done on Sunday. I skipped the HYMN part and went straight to the first reading on the page.
"I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. (Jn 10:28)
I was so surprised and it made me smile so big!! I told Jon that I sure had an incredible story to tell him after Mass! He was amazed as I told him what had happened and that this was the page I had marked on Sunday. I truly believe it was a 'Godincidence' as my daughter -in- law Marie calls them.
Well, you may be a doubter and think it is just me being a 'cockeyed optimist' again, but I came into work to tell my sister. I was on the phone putting my daily voice message on and she was standing right behind me. I didn't realize she was there. I turned around and she was holding a souvenir that her boss had brought back from Italy. It was a hand holding a very large and ornate church. It was depicting the hand of God holding His church in His palm!!! I said, "Oh My God Beverly, do I have a story to tell you. I am going to take this as confirmation of what has happened!" She was amazed as I told her about the events as they unfolded and the signs that I felt were sent to validate what happened to Paul.
"Christ, our Good Shepherd, hears our voices far more keenly than we sometimes hear His."
Amen, Alleluia.
I will keep your intentions in my heart as I fold my hands in prayer for all of you.
Thank you for your intercessory prayers. They keep us walking on this pathway.
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
P.S. A last reminder to any of you who might be sending a quick note to Michael for his Senior year breakfast (they don't have to be long - just a few lines to congratulate him and wish him well!) - please email them to me no later than tomorrow night, Wednesday, at rafidero@bellsouth.net
Thanks to everyone !
Jon and I went to the 8:30 AM Mass like usual. We didn't have our cell phones with us, so we weren't going to stay after Mass to have coffee. As we were walking out, I told Jon I was going to just dash back to the kitchen and grab a cup of coffee, as I really like the coffee they serve. When we got back there, we saw our friend Rick and we stopped to just say hello and then leave. As I was talking to Rick, I noticed that a woman who was sitting at the table with her husband looked familiar to me. I kept trying to remember and then it hit me. She was the wonderful person who came up to me after a morning mass and had handed me a bottle of Lourdes Holy Water. I went to her and said that I remembered this very kind deed and introduced myself. She said her name was Marie (easy name for me to remember!!) and that she had been at a healing Mass and my face came to her mind. She then asked for an extra bottle of the Lourdes water and waited until she next saw me and gave it to me. As we were talking, I learned that she is the mother of one of the students I had in the youth group when I was Youth Group Minister at St. Stephen's! In fact, she was the mother of a very dear friend of Paul's named Danny. Danny had been to our house hundreds of times over the years and I was just now meeting his mother! She told me that had a child who died at only 9 months old and that she understood our suffering. I told her that we probably had not suffered as much as she had, since our son was still here with us. I held her hands and thanked her so much for her prayers and thoughtfulness in bringing us the Holy Water. She told me that she learned how to be joyful in her suffering through someone she knew who had accepted with great joy a life filled with suffering. Marie told me that anytime she felt such sorrow, she would think of this woman who was such a huge inspiration for her and she would turn her sorrow into joy and would thank God for the suffering He had allowed. I told her that that was exactly what I had been spending time contemplating these past few weeks. I was trying to remember to thank God with a joyful heart for the gift of suffering and to truly view it as a gift from God. I went home and was so excited when I told Paul who I had met.
Paul had a great Friday - he went on a mile walk with Jerry and their dogs, he went out to eat with the Hufford family and also Jerry's aunt and uncle. He stayed up until midnight with us as we all enjoyed a "night out at the movies" at Jerry's and he had an active Saturday. He started to go downhill around 1 PM on Sunday and had really bad headaches. They were ranging around the 6.5 mark. He was taking Advil every 4 hours. I stayed home with him on Monday too, as he was in a lot of pain again. He woke up around 3:48 AM today and I was already awake (I guess God wanted me to pray the Divine Mercy, because I woke at 3:15 and was wide awake and immediately thought of that prayer). Paul wanted to get some pain medicine. I told him to wait in his room and I would go get it. He said he wanted to walk downstairs to see if being up would help him at all (as it had a couple of times before). So we went downstairs and we were standing in the dark in the kitchen. I didn't turn on lights as I know it hurts his head.
He stood there and was very upset his head was hurting and he said that maybe with the next surgery, they could just 'remove' his brain so that he would be done with the pain. I thought of Marie's advice about how she tried to deal with her emotional pain and I told Paul that we should stop and thank God for the opportunity to serve Him and for the gift of this pain and suffering. I reminded him that God knows how bad Paul hurts, but we should try to be thankful in all things. He said that was a good idea, and he took my hand and asked me to pray with him. I came up with the idea that while we prayed, we should imagine we were also holding the hands of Jesus and to place ourselves in his presence. I told Paul to picture how Jesus's face would look when Paul went home to heaven and he was able to hear the words, "Well done my faithful servant." Paul then started to pray out loud to Jesus. He had prayed for only about 45 seconds and then he stopped and got very choked up. He was crying and he looked at me and said, "I just felt the hand of Jesus. He was touching my hand and he squeezed my hand like this" and he showed me how it felt. I started to cry also, because there was so much joy in Paul's voice when he told me this. I said, "See! Jesus is letting you know that that is exactly what he wants from you. Always thank Him for everything, no matter what the circumstance and find joy in it.
Paul hugged me so tightly and then said he wanted to go back upstairs to try to get some sleep. As we walked back up the stairs, I laughingly asked him if he was going to wash that hand ever again? He said, "Maybe in 6 months!". I blessed him and prayed that God would allow him to at the very least get a very restful night's sleep.
Last Sunday, I had my Magnificat with me, only it was the one for May. I placed the ribbons to mark the first day. Tuesday, May 1st. I read all the introductory parts before Mass. I thought to myself that I was going to make a very conscientious effort to make Mass every day that I could in May, since it was the month of Mary. So, this morning, I got up and hurried out the door. I didn't have time to see Jon to tell him of the occurrence during the night. I got to church and sat down next to him. I opened my prayer book to the marked page that I had done on Sunday. I skipped the HYMN part and went straight to the first reading on the page.
"I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. (Jn 10:28)
I was so surprised and it made me smile so big!! I told Jon that I sure had an incredible story to tell him after Mass! He was amazed as I told him what had happened and that this was the page I had marked on Sunday. I truly believe it was a 'Godincidence' as my daughter -in- law Marie calls them.
Well, you may be a doubter and think it is just me being a 'cockeyed optimist' again, but I came into work to tell my sister. I was on the phone putting my daily voice message on and she was standing right behind me. I didn't realize she was there. I turned around and she was holding a souvenir that her boss had brought back from Italy. It was a hand holding a very large and ornate church. It was depicting the hand of God holding His church in His palm!!! I said, "Oh My God Beverly, do I have a story to tell you. I am going to take this as confirmation of what has happened!" She was amazed as I told her about the events as they unfolded and the signs that I felt were sent to validate what happened to Paul.
"Christ, our Good Shepherd, hears our voices far more keenly than we sometimes hear His."
Amen, Alleluia.
I will keep your intentions in my heart as I fold my hands in prayer for all of you.
Thank you for your intercessory prayers. They keep us walking on this pathway.
Love,
Jon and Rebecca
P.S. A last reminder to any of you who might be sending a quick note to Michael for his Senior year breakfast (they don't have to be long - just a few lines to congratulate him and wish him well!) - please email them to me no later than tomorrow night, Wednesday, at rafidero@bellsouth.net
Thanks to everyone !
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