Sorry I haven’t blogged in a bit… I’ve finally been able to have some time in the office. You can check out the latest blogs from the interns at http://blog.g42globlal.org . Today, I just want to share with you some of the battles we’ve been going through.
I’m sure you’ve heard by now, but good ol’ Ben hurt himself a couple of weeks ago. He stepped on a metal plate in the back yard that had been in direct sunlight all day. It was as hot as a frying pan and gave him severe 2nd degree burns on the soles of both feet. We got him to the hospital immediately–which began a week-long saga where Rebecca and Ben were stuck in a dark, dingy hospital room, didn’t completely understand the nurses, and Ben had to go through daily (excruciating) treatment for his burns. Meanwhile, I was home with the girls and tried to juggle housework and kids. [sidenote: Bec, I don’t know how you do it! Again, I love you and think you are a superhero.]
It was an intense time… we contacted as many people as we could to pray for Ben, especially when the doctors thought they might have to do a skin graft. We were scared–Ben was in intense pain, and basically trapped in this hospital for an indeterminate amount of time. We turned to YOU, to our friends and family, who encouraged us tremendously and prayed for us, no matter where you were in the world. And we believe we got a little miracle…
Ben didn’t need a skin graft. After the first scare was over and some pain medication kicked in, he was back to his own happy self, smiling and “brrrrrm- brrrrrrm”ing his cars over everything. We were allowed to leave the burn unit and continue his treatment at home after a week in the hospital. {Thank you Elizabeth, a nurse in the local church, who volunteered to keep an eye on Ben and help us with the bandages!} Being allowed to leave the hospital was a miracle in itself–doctors and other parents on the ward had told us to be ready for a long stay, and none of the other children in the burn ward while we were there had left earlier than three weeks-with various degrees of burns.
But Ben is now home and life is getting back to normal. We see this whole ordeal as yet another “trial by fire” for Ben and our family. These setbacks just don’t affect one or two of our family members, but the whole family. Each link in the family is stressed: Bec and myself; Me and the girls (it seems I’m now the ‘meanie’ of the family), the girls with each other… this is where the real attack comes, against the family as a whole.
But through it all, we stand together, knowing this is all for a Greater Purpose, and we are committed to working and growing through these speed bumps. We know that Ben will have a tremendous testimony and “Walk” in the future…
In part 2, I’ll seek your help for the next battle in the war. Stay tuned.