He was the last thought I had before I left. All the preparation, all the plans, and all the instructions—everything had been leading to this moment. I kept thinking of all the “what-ifs’” and running them through my mind over and over. Above all else, while getting ready to leave on my extended trip, I wanted to make sure all the preparations were in place. Right before I … [Read more...]
Chosen and Favored
Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined this would happen. It certainly wasn’t the path she had planned out for her life. When she initially got the news she was stunned. After all, this pregnancy wasn’t even expected in the first place. But to then get the news that this child wouldn’t be typical…well, no one originally plans or even dreams of giving birth to a special … [Read more...]
I’m Here To Take Care Of You
“Do you want to hold him?” The nurse handed your newly born body to me and placed you in my trembling arms. I remember looking down at you for the very first time and whispering, “I’m your dad, I’m here to take care of you.” I thought about that experience many times this week as you turned eighteen. In an instant I went from having a child with special needs to being the parent … [Read more...]
I Never Dreamed
This week one of my good friends accompanied his eighteen-year-old son off to join the Marines. Another friend sent his eighteen-year-old child off to college. My son turns eighteen in two weeks. Last night he peed in the bathtub. The gap between our life and the life of a typical family is sometimes so vast that it’s difficult to comprehend. As my wife likes to say, “Sometimes my … [Read more...]
I’ll Never Let Go
I remember holding him in my arms for the first time just minutes after cutting his cord in the delivery room. I would place his sleeping form on my chest, his head gently laying across my shoulder, as we sat in my chair at night. I would rest contentedly when, as an infant, he would curl up against me on the bed and nuzzle his head in the crook of my arm. I would hold him in my … [Read more...]
I’ll Get You Home
"Seizure- full blown- I’m on it.” I texted those words to my wife with one hand, as I ripped my seatbelt off with the other hand. Earlier this morning at breakfast, my wife had noticed our son was especially restless and agitated. “He’s out of sorts this morning,” she had said. We had attended church together, and on the way home, we stopped at the grocery store for the weekly shopping. … [Read more...]