Caleb Update

Caleb was released from the hospital yesterday. Hooray!

More later . . .

Sleeping With Memories

I always love sleeping in the spare room at Steve's parent's house. Last night as I got into bed, I looked over to my right and saw the white wicker chair where I had "arranged" Sarah as a newborn so that I could take her picture. And at the foot of the bed was the dresser with the drawer where Nathan slept as an infant.

As life goes on and time goes by, touching base with those precious memories is especially good for the soul.

And now those little teeny Smithlet babies are fourteen and twenty years old, which means I'm a few years older, as well. I'm older and wiser and I'm sleeping with memories.

And speaking of memories, when I borrowed my mom-in-law's ironing board yesterday, she happened to mention that she got it for a wedding gift. A wedding gift? That means her ironing board is fifty-five years old!

In a world where so many things are "obsolete" in just five years (or even in six months, or ten minutes) I found it quite wondrous to use an ironing board that has lasted through five and a half decades and has been carted to Pennsylvania, England, Hawaii, New Mexico (twice), Denmark, Nebraska, and North Carolina, to name just a few of the stops the Ken Smith family made along the way.

That's the ironing board that held Steve's clothes when he was a 7-year old, a 15-year old and a 22-year old, and last night it stood and faithfully held the clothes of the 52-year old man who emerged from those earlier ages.

The older I get, the faster time goes and the quicker each day passes. I'm especially grateful that ironing boards and dresser drawers and wicker chairs still hold the memories that time left behind.

______________________________

Caleb Update:

Debbie called last night and said that they were getting ready to discharge Caleb yesterday afternoon when he threw up.

No big deal. It isn't unusual for someone who has been through everything that he has endured to throw up.

But then he threw up again. And again. And his doctor got more concerned and said that throwing up indicated there had been more trauma done to the brain than originally thought. And so Randy drove home last night to get ready to preach this morning and Debbie stayed behind at the hospital with her sweet son.

She said that several times yesterday he said to her, "Come over to my bed and pray with me, Mama." And Debbie would go over to him and pray and cry. There's nothing quite as sacred as a loving mother's prayers, punctuated with tears.

Thanks for your continued prayers for Caleb and also for his Mom and Dad. Steve and I are very well acquainted with the emotions that come and visit the hospital room of a sick child. Our hearts are very much with the Mantik family today.

Update on Caleb

Just talked with Debbie.

Caleb has a fractured skull and some blood pooling inside but after observation through the night and a few more scans, it looks like he'll be released later today. His skull will take at least three months to mend.

Debbie said Caleb had been riding bike with his dad when all of a sudden, Randy saw Caleb's bike start to weave; the next thing he knew, Caleb was lying on the ground, unconscious. Caleb doesn't remember any of that; it's not real clear why he suddenly passed out.

Debbie got to ride with him in the ambulance to their small local hospital and then in the other ambulance on the way to Madison. She said that was extra special for her because when Caleb was a baby, he had to be transported by ambulance and she wasn't allowed to ride with him. It made her mother heart very, very happy to be able to be by his side through this particular trauma. She is a wonderful mother. (And a wonderful sister, may I add!)

Thanks for your concern and prayers; I told Debbie that our Smithellaneous friends were praying and she was so grateful.

We're off to Charlotte in a few minutes for a concert tomorrow. I'll sing as long as my voice and lungs allow; unfortunately, it's not been a good week in those two areas but the Bible says that God's strength is made perfect in our weakness. I guess that means that God will be showing up strong tomorrow--for us, for Randy, Debbie and Caleb, and for you! We're all weak in some way and we all need His strength in some way.

My Mom's favorite verse is, "The joy of the Lord is my strength." That's such a good verse to hold on to--with both hands and with my whole heart!

Prayers Needed

Caleb is on the left; his cousin, Andrew, is with him. (They're at the cemetery where Dad was buried a month ago.)

It's 10:35 pm.

My sister, Debbie, just called from Wisconsin. Her and Randy's brilliant and funny 13-year old son, Caleb, had a bike accident a few minutes ago and was knocked unconscious. They rushed him to their local hospital for an MRI and he is now being transferred to a large medical center in Madison. She said there is bleeding, but didn't talk long enough to let us know where it is.

Thank you for remembering them in prayer, as the first hours after an accident like this are always crucial.