The Beat Goes On...

After a week of disruptive sleep and stress, a weekend of worry, stress and no sleep, The Queen hit a brick wall. My daughter, The Unsinkable Kristen, is appropriately named.... however, her mother felt made of lead and being unsinkable was unthinkable!

We have spent the past two days in the ICU ward of the hospital praying that dad will recover from his major heart attack. Yes, the signs are improving. Yes, he sat up for the first time. Yes, he had more color in his face. Yes, he is still weak and fragile. But it has been a good day.

So many people came to visit again today. It has been great visiting with them all and it made the time pass quickly. There is another family that has a father in the ICU ward and they have been there for 21 straight days. I could not even fathom that. They asked for our prayers.

We had a wonderful visit from our resident FBI church friend. He is a wonderful man, full of love for not only his own family but his church family as well. He has a great sense of humor. He tolerates my adoration for his profession and I joke about how he and Jack Bauer keep the world safe. He had such a busy day today but still made time to come up and visit. It really meant a lot to all of us.

Many other church friends came today as well; three elders visited both days and they have been a steady source of encouragement. People don't often realize how much their presence means to a family in crisis and sometimes just sitting with them is all that is needed.
Sometimes laughter is very helpful in lessening the stressful moments. My dear friend, Lori, certainly brings laughter and joy with her whenever she visits. (along with great gum!) God gave me a wonderful friend when he put her in my life.

While God has given me so many new friends at Liberty, he has been gracious in providing me with a steadfast, old friend (not in age but in years of friendship.... yeah, uh..... that's really what I meant Jude. ). Judy O has been with me through thick and thin, through moves, through silly mojito-moments, children, tortillas, Rambo, La Leche League, food co-ops, vacation bible schools, youth rally's, and the beat goes on...... and the beat goes on ....for 25 years. I was there when her father passed and only my car crash on the interstate outside of Winston Salem prevented me from being with her when her mother passed. (My poor little VW-Beetle never fully recovered.) When hearing about dad, she sent a beautiful plant and flower arrangement to the hospital. I love her dearly and we know that the other one will always be there, no matter what state we might live in. LOL.

We have spent most of this weekend talking and telling stories. One of the gifts dad passed on to us was his gift of story-telling. He is one of the greatest story tellers I know. Part of growing up included dinner around our little brown table (they still use that table to this day). Stories flowed from the first bite of dinner until the last bit of icing was licked off the plate after eating the delicious dessert Mom made from scratch. Dad had more stories than Starbucks had coffee options. I could hear them over and over again because I loved the way he told them. I still do. I think he would be proud of the way we have picked up his mantle and have continued to share stories with all of our friends. In fact, after this episode, I think we have several new "Harv" stories to add to the mix. But, Cheryl's dog story about Shepard still cracks me up. If you didn't get to hear it, then you will have to ask her to tell you....but be sure to mention you want the embellished version!!!! She'll crack up for sure!

Well, The Queen needs to get to sleep. She will be one grumpy majesty tomorrow and really doesn't want to be a royal pain in the booty. So, goodnight to all of you... may you have sweet sleep and a wonderful day of praise and communion tomorrow.