Encouragement

---

Close Window
Chris

His life has been in the valley of the shadow of death for five years, but he has feared no evil. It was discovered he had leukemia by accident. They treated it promptly and he achieved a short time of health before it reoccurred. Then he got a stem cell transplant, not from embryos, his mother, Suzie, wouldn't allow that if it was available, but from readily and ethically available umbilical cords. Then came the years of war. His body against the new cells. Graft versus host. A horrible side effect of a treatment full of potential. His school years, years that should have been full of sports and girls consisted of home schooling and isolation.(Well most of his nurses were girls, but that's a different story) He was immunosuppressed so if any emergency happened an ambulance would have been a hearst with all equipment that had touched other bodies. Yet Suzie remained strong, full of hope and confidence in the Lord. She knew Chris was just a loan.

She lived with him at the hospital. A large part of the five years of his illness her address was his hospital room which was a short walk to work. She seldom missed work, even when he was released home because of a supportive mother who helped home school him. Without her mother's financial and emotional support, Suzie wouldv'e been adrift in a sea of despair. Grandma referred to Chris as, "Her little man." Dad showed up at the beginning but faded from view quickly. Blood isn't always thicker than water.

Their live was far from normal. Chris's hospitial room, at first filled with teenage posters,videos and strobe lights became heavily decorated with frogs.(Yes, I said frogs.) Thank heavens for frogs, Chris learned to crochet so he could properly clothe his green friends. I never knew frogs came in so many sizes and styles and shapes. I made the mistake of sending him a gigantic turtle once, that mistake was rectified quickly with a proper exchange.

Listening to other mothers complain of messy rooms and undone homework she had to laugh. With her and Chris it was, "Oh, honey, don't worry about that, I'll pick it up for you. Homework? Let's do something else." He was discharged home occasionally but always returned.

The medical bills were enormous, thank heaven for insurance and friends. Suzie said once that most people don't know the price of their children, Chris is worth close to a few million dollars now. Some one held a few speghetti lunch fund raisers to help Suzie. This helped procure 4000 dollars to off set medication purchases. Those that bought tickets for the lunch that was served at work and arrived when the food was gone still donated more money. So that if they missed a meal, they didn't accept the reimbursement offer. The spirit of giving was in full swing. The staff at the children's hospital were his family, friends and cheering squad. He worked the night shift as a unit secretary, answering the phone when the nurses were busy. He hung out at the nursing station so much he was familiar with the correct responses to every situation, but he never got paid, (hope the child labor board doesn't read this)

He had gone off the charts in the course of his illness. He had survived four years longer than any other prey of this form of leukemia. The doctors were on experimental ground on any treatment options they provided for him. Why did he get a longer life span? To encourage us in our struggles, to show us our child raising delimas are miniscule, to promote better relationships with our own offspring, to embrace them more often, to listen to them with both ears, to appreciate them for we never know who God will choose next to bring home. Maybe he suffered to enrich our prayer lives, how many have gone to God to talk about Chris that would never have approached him before? How many people have questioned God because of Chris? With questions come answers, God encourages us to ask, seek and knock, because we get answers, find things and open doors.

Someone asked me why his mother had to go through this suffering, she's so spiritual, they said. Well, if I recall the Virgin Mary was spiritual also and look what happened to her son. Just as Mary watched her son die, Suzie is watching her son die, Mary's son was nailed to a cross, Suzie's son is nailed to a respirator, Mary got to be with her son till the end, Suzie is staying by Chris's bedside, Mary got to see her son "after" he died, Suzie will get to see her son after she dies.

Suzie's co workers brought her a picnic lunch to the waiting room at Chris's hospital during his last days. They prepared a table for her in the midst of her enemies, satan and his minions, as her son lay by the still waters his shepherd led him to. Entubated and medicated God was close to him. I couldn't see the forms in his room but I sensed there wasn't even standing room as angels hovered about him. It had come time to decide to let him go home to God.

Suzi was given some water from Lourde's that her mother sprinkled on Chris's forehead. (Ths water was definitely an example of water thicker than his dad's blood!) Mom finally made the decision to stop treating the illness and let him rest.
They lowered the pain meds a little so he could be easily aroused, not so sleepy but comfortable. She wanted him to know she was by his side. They talked about all the pets they'd had over the years and played his favorite CD's. As Chris's friends come to say good bye to him, Suzie encouraged them to not just stand there and awkwardly express their love for him but to verbally recall the good times they had had together so Chris could share in the memories. His father left instructions to be called close to the end, he didn't want to arrive to early.

The hour came for Chris to go home. He was lying in bed surrounded by the usual scene, (family and nurses around him),when he fixed his eyes on someone behind his aunt, someone only he could see. He started a conversation with this invisible soul and flatlined. His mother, full of faith in God directed everyone to look up at the ceiling and wave good bye, his soul was going home, no need to look at his earthly tabernacle anymore. She wanted his final recollections to be everyone's face looking up at him, not the back of their heads looking down at the abandoned clay vessel.

The service that followed was referred to as a celebration of Chris's life. It was well attended. Standing room only at the back. His father was present. I noticed the minister made no mention of him throughout the service. I also noticed the absense of dad's pictures in the slide show. After all, where was he while his son grew up? He was not a regular presense. I wanted to introduce myself to him and say, "Glad you could make it."

The stage was a display case for his favorite frogs,(Chris's opinion, if you weren't a frog you were a nobody!) there were videos of him growing up, his favorite Carman songs, some dancing, some singing, some shared retrospections of his life that brought smiles and laughter and finally a dinner of his favorite meal.. Hot dogs with macarroni and cheese, and vanilla pudding, served outside picnic style.

There is life after life. Though Chris walked through the valley of the shadow of death,God was there. God's rod and staff comforted him. God prepared a table for Chris and will filled his cup to overflowing before Chris's ememy, luekemia. Chris entered into the house of God forever

---

PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE