We like to forget life is unpredictable. Sometimes it is. My mother in law Marie went to be with God Friday around noon. She lived much longer than we dared hope, and never lost her optimism or ability to fight on against tall odds. Now she's in heaven and more than well- she's perfect. That gives Susan and me comfort. We had time to prepare for this, time to grieve the loss of her strength and functions, time to get used to the idea that soon, she'd be far away from us. In the end, her passing was predictable. After 2 strokes and an abdominal aortic aneurysm, kidney infections, colitis, and pneumonia, it was a matter of time, and we accepted that.
Then about 4 AM Sunday morning, we got a call from St. Johns Mercy Hospital. Our son Matt had been struck by a car as he walked home from closing things down at work. His spleen was fractured and he needed surgery. He heard a car coming from behind him sideways around a corner and Matt dashed up a lawn to escape. The car followed him onto the lawn and struck him, took out two mailboxes on that side of the street, crossed the street, traversed 2 lawns, and struck a van. Matt bounced up and saw he had no broken bones and went to see if the guy was OK. He was already on the cell phone complaining he'd totaled his car. When the police and ambulance arrived, they initially thought Matt was OK, but he then got lightheaded because of internal bleeding, so they took him to St. Johns. When we saw him he was white as a sheet.
Matt is a strong guy and he's recovering well after getting his spleen removed. Now he's walking and starting to eat a bit. He'll miss some work and miss his spleen if ever he gets a serious infection. We're all missing that sense of order in the world, that sense that today, we'll get up in the morning and tonight we'll go to sleep in our own bed, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day. Maybe. Maybe not. The ground feels a little less solid now. We're reminded that things are not as stable as they seem.
Either way, it's hard to not admire Matt's first instincts. He wanted to know if the other guy was OK. That's pretty solid.
Tunneling the Spiritually Rich
9 years ago
3 comments:
Amen to that Rich. There are so many things that we just ASSUME and in reality, most of them are fleeting. When my mother in law died from ALS, the minister did a fantastic job of painting a picture of her whole, healthy and happy. It was exactly what family and friends needed to here and better yet, the reality of the situation.
Glad you son is on the mend. Isn't it great when you see them do something that is just "right". Maybe we didn't do to bad of a job raising kids after all.
Really glad to hear Matt is doing better. We're continuing to pray for all of you.
"The ground feels a little less solid now. We're reminded that things are not as stable as they seem."
...but you always seemed stable to me. Calm is coming Rich, it always does after such a storm.
Hearts are with you in South Korea.
Stan and Suzanne
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