Archives for June 2014

   Reflections on Love & Life…..Today is June 25, 2014. 15 years ago, I was sitting in a waiting room at Vanderbilt Children’s hospital praying for the life of my 3 1/2  year old daughter. Would she live? She was having open heart surgery to repair a hole in her heart. One she could not live with and one, had we ignored, that would require a heart and lung transplant later. Whew! I still remember the day I received that news. I was 8 months pregnant with my son and on bed rest. I felt the weight of that news like a ton of bricks on my chest. She had the surgery 8 months after I gave birth. So the season of a newborn and no sleep was also fraught with the wonderings of what would happen in the future. Although we had an amazing cardiologist and amazing surgeon, nothing prepares you for the what ifs.… nothing prepares you for the feeling of powerlessness and hoping that doctors do know what they are doing. Even putting your child in the hands of an amazing, renowned doctor does not take that away. The only thing that sustained me was  faith in the God who created us  in the first place. That’s easy to say in hindsight, mind you. It was not easy. It was a day by day, moment by moment, sometimes second by second journey for months. Surgery day…June 25,1999 was the longest day of my life thus far. It seemed those hours of waiting were suspended in time and I couldn’t rush them no matter how hard I tried. I wouldn’t want to relive that season but I am thankful for what I learned about God, my faith, my marriage,my family and frankly, myself. So this is one reason why I am passionate about family life! All the career goals vanish in these moments. Although my career is important…my family is priority. What are you living for today? Having goals is absolutely necessary in life but don’t let them crowd out what is truly important- your relationships. I am thankful everyday  that my daughter came through the surgery fine and has grown into a beautiful young woman, inside and out!