What a Week

I'm going to let mommy talk a bit today:

When you say that it's hard to have so many life events happen at once, you're not kidding. This past week was one of those weeks. Anxiously, Jackson & I boarded a plane on Thurs evening to be in Lubbock when my sister delivered her first baby. As I was leaving the office on Thurs, I told Gary "Don't worry, I'll be back by Sunday. I'm just there for less than 48 hours and there's no threat of bad weather." Little did I know... I was so proud of myself for packing only the necessities for me & Jackson. I drove us to the airport, found the perfect spot in the A lot so that when we got off the plane, I'd have to walk minimal steps to be in my car and heading home. I had a diaper bag, a backpack (with our 2 days of clothes tightly fit in a space saver bag), a stroller, and car seat. I had no idea I'd later regret being such a skimpy packer. Thursday night Steph (my sister) was supposed to go into the hospital to be induced but she was told there was no room so wait and call again at 7am on Friday. Friday we woke up to snow. So here we are with no signs of a baby on the way and bad weather (my 48 hour plan is not looking promising)...so we went to the mall. While there, my mom received a call from my dad saying that he was on his way from NM to Midland because my Granddad was in the hospital. By 6pm that evening, mom & I were sitting in the hospital room with Steph while my dad was in the Hospice room at the hospital in Midland with my Granddad. Though we were all sitting in different rooms in different towns, our hearts and minds were with the others. By late Saturday night, we were torn even more. My sister was having to have a C-Section and my granddad was slipping more and more away. (My mom's mother said it best I think when she said that my granddad and Emily were going to pass each other on their journeys. I know that my granddad had not died when Emily made her appearance that night but I do believe that his spirit was well on it's way to meet Jesus. Maybe that's how I reconcile the two events.) Sunday morning we received the call...Granddad had died. With heavy hearts, we went to the hospital to welcome Emily Laverne Brown (named after my Granddad) and then drove to Midland to grieve with the family.

People have asked how I'm doing during this crazy week of events, many wondering why I'm not more tearful. After all, I was probably closest to Granddad and probably most like him. I guess my answer is that I have been praying for this to happen for 9 months now. Granddad's "official" ALS diagnosis came the day that Jackson was born. I dreaded the fact that I would have to watch the strongest man I know go gradually down hill. I didn't want to see him confined to bed, hooked up to oxygen, and having all nutrients given to him by a tube while still having the cognition to let me know what I need to do with my retirement money. That's just not fair. So, to me, this was a week of blessings. Though I'll miss my Granddad horribly, I have to praise God that on Wednesday we buried his physical body (or sinful body that would be overcome by disease & sickness) and allowed him to take on a new body that wouldn't hold him back from doing what he wanted to do most...give constant glory to God.