Saturday, March 19, 2011

Denver: Part One

The days ticked by S L O W L Y as we anxiously awaited our visit to Denver Children's Hospital / National Jewish Health Center.  It was torture to watch Cale in so much pain and not be able to do anything but wait. 

We were at our wits end in November, in tears almost daily, and the soonest they could schedule Cale wasn't until March.  I think the last four months have been some of the hardest ones we've come up against, even trumping the days after Cale was diagnosed with significant developmental delays, which I account to some of the darkest days of my entire life.  Watching the joy and innocence sucked from our little boy's life was unbearable.  March could not, and did not, come soon enough.  The phrase I caught myself repeating over and over was, "someone IS going to help us or all hell is going to break loose!".   I was determined not to leave that hospital until someone fixed him.  Mama Bear was about to get angry.

As March 9th approached I found myself excited and almost giddy.  My spirits were high and I was beginning to see little glimpses of hope. This is going to work!  


We left on a Wednesday and the previous Sunday the elders at our church offered to pray over Cale and our trip.  We met in our pastor's office before the start of the service and as I entered the room I realized I didn't recognize half of the eight or nine men that were sitting in a circle waiting for us.  We gave a brief summary of Cale's history and the challenges we have come up against, while also explaining the purpose of our trip to Denver and our hopes that went along with it.  Most of the elders had a bible verse or words of encouragement prepared in advance to share with us, and as Alex and I both wept unashamedly, we saw that many of the grown men sitting around us were weeping also.  These were men I had never met and who had never before met Cale, but their genuine care and empathy for our family was so evident that I will forever remember this encounter.  When it came time to pray over Cale our pastor anointed him with oil, and one by one each elder began to pray for Cale's healing.  I've prayed this prayer many, many, many times before and have not gotten an answer, but these individuals were so confident in their approach before the Lord that I left that office almost anticipating Cale running away from me and joyfully yelling, "Come catch me, Mom!", followed by "Can you take me to McDonald's to get a Happy Meal?".  That obviously didn't happen but I know that the Lord heard their prayers and that He was pleased in our coming before Him.  It always amazes me to be reminded of just how many people love and care for our family.  It truly warms my heart. 

On Tuesday, the day before we left, Alex came home and told me that he got a call from someone at our church.  They had decided to give us a check for $1,500 to help pay for the expense of our trip.  Alex told them that our plane tickets only cost $1,100 and that they were going well beyond anything we could have ever expected or hoped for, but they insisted on giving us the full amount to also help pay for food and hotel costs.  Again, we are so loved and so blessed to have such a generous and caring church family!

Wednesday morning finally came and I was so excited to finally be able to say that we were leaving!  I was even so excited that I didn't cry once during our flight, which for those of you who know me well recognize this as monumental!  We were finally on our way to getting the answers we needed and the help we longed for.

Part Two still to come...

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