As you know, I had my CT scan and check-up with Dr. Beck. I got good news from him-- "You're still cured on paper", he told me. While that was very exciting, it was playing music in the chemo room withOUT being hooked up to an IV myself that was really special. I also found out that Dr. Beck has been using my "Quiet Sunshine" CD in the bone marrow room. When I recorded that CD, I dreamed of it being used for things like that but had no idea how to make it happen, or if it would ever would. Wow.
Thursday, I rode with my friend Kathy to Lindsborg. I was truly blessed by the conversations I had with Kathy on the way there and back. She is my parent's age, but we are definitely "kindred spirits". It was so refreshing to talk with another like-minded Christian about our relationships with God, the things He is teaching us, and they ways He is challenging us.
From Thursday night through Monday morning, we had company. Our friend Kyle Cooper (from Nashville) and two of his friends, Brian and Joel, came to town for the Teens for Christ Rally and stayed with our family. They are all talented musicians and very strong Christians. It was awesome to watch them spend time every morning studying their Bibles and praying together to prepare for their programs. Their music practice came after their quiet times with the Lord, even though the music was the most obvious part of the program. It was a joy to witness that, and also just to be servants to them, preparing & serving meals, printing sheet music, making powerpoints, etc. Now that I'm feeling well and have energy, it is a delight to do simple things like clean and cook and shovel the driveway and carry in wood... things that used to be tedious work.
Friday evening, Amber & I took "the boys" to the Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility for the monthly Teens for Christ (TFC) program there. It was the smallest group of girls we've ever had, but they seemed genuinely touched by the message that Kyle, Brian, and Joel shared through music and testimony. This program was the one-year anniversary of TFC's presence there. It has been life-changing to spend time with the girls there. They are criminals, and yet they are just little girls who are hurting and need the love of God in their lives. That God would choose me to be a part of sharing that love with them is just incredible. It leaves me speechless.
Saturday evening was the TFC rally here in Concordia. Another one of Kyle's friends, Jeremy, came up from Wichita to play drums. The four of them also invited Amber and I to play with them on several songs. It was really special for me. You see, I have a huge heart for worship and love worshiping with my dulcimer, but leading worship is not what the Lord has called me to with my music. Saturday was one of those rare times when I got to combine my passions for music and worship, and it was enormously refreshing.
Additionally, Amber & I were honored in a really special way by Kent and Lisa, directors of TFC. They declared us "honorary staff members" and gave us each a beautiful plaque, honoring us for our support and involvement in their work with area teenagers. It was a really emotional moment. Amber & I had no clue they were going to do that, so it caught us completely off-guard. We all shed a few tears. We've been involved with Teens for Christ programs since I was in high school, and they've done so much to encourage my spiritual growth. What a blessing!
To culminate this very special week, our family will be celebrating Jesus' birthday with friends tonight for Christmas Eve. We will be having chili and cinnamon bread, and then a birthday cake for Jesus. We always close the evening by reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and then the Christmas story from Luke chapter 2. Through the years, our time as a family on Christmas Eve has become one of my fondest memories. We've always dedicated this night to focusing on the Greatest Gift of all-- our Savior, Jesus Christ. As much as I enjoy giving and receiving packages on Christmas morning, it is Jesus' birthday party that means the most to me.
Ok, enough rambling and sentimentality... Merry Christmas and may the Lord richly bless each of you as we celebrate the birth of our Savior!
[ 1 comment ] ( 31 views ) | [ 0 trackbacks ] | permalink |
( 3 / 96 )IT"S TIME TO CELEBRATE! Erin's CANCER FREE! YEAH! SISTER IS HAPPY!!!
We started our morning out ROUGH. Erin's scan was scheduled for 10:00am so I was headed out to warm the car up at 8:30am. It started up just like it always does but the heater wouldn't turn on UH OH! So I thought, we'll jusst let it warm up for 5 mintues or so.....(if you hadn't heard we've got about 6 inches of snow on the groud). The heater NEVER came on, so I called mom. WHAT DO I DO?!?! We ended up taking the BIG truck. We got left just a little late. The highway was still a little slick so we took it easy and got to the imaging center.
They got her IV in with one stick but OH MY you should see the bruise. At this point I started feeling REALLY sick.hm...stress maybe?? We went shopping after the CT. Not fun when one isn't feeling good. After shopping we went to eat luch. I had some soup and erin and a soup and sandwich. Dinner didn't agree with me and right back up it came. EEEWWW GROSS!!!
Erin went to her blood draw where she got her FAVORITE and only 1 poke! YEAH!!! After blood we went to the cancer center to play music. It was NO fun being back in the chemo room even if she wasn't hooked up, but sis wanted to so I did.
Erin's doctor visit was short and sweet. Her next visit is in June. How thankful we are for the good news. It's not easy to walk in knowing you could be devistated. God continues to be good to us.
I'm starting to feel better this evening, hopefully I"ll be as good as new tomorrow. We're expecting some ice tomorrow so we all worry about dad. Hopefully it will miss us.
Love you all,
HAPPY SIS AMBER
[ add comment ] ( 12 views ) | [ 0 trackbacks ] | permalink |
( 3.1 / 82 )It is very good to be home! Amber & I arrived safely about dinner time last Wednesday. We're nearly unpacked and have been thoroughly enjoying our time together as a family. We even got to play music together for a church service on Sunday evening. *happiness*
I've had a little more time to read and write and think (am I the only one who enjoys thinking?!) since I've been home from school. It's amazing how quickly a person's priorities can change, without even being aware it is happening. When I moved to Texas, I dove in head-first... exerting all my energy into making it "home". Somehow, in the midst of all of that, I quit taking the time to read my Bible everyday, to have intentional quiet times of prayer and worship, to write my thoughts, to encourage my friends going through tough times. It wasn't that I was wasting a lot of time, though I certainly did some of that (procrastinators anonymous anyone?). I just got busy doing a lot of other things and let some of those important things slip into the background. I don't have many regrets about last semester-- I made some great friends and learned A LOT-- but I am taking some time to re-prioritize again.
It comes back to reading, writing, and thinking for me. When I read, I am inspired to write. When I write, it stimulates my brain and makes me really think through things. Plus, I love writing notes to people--I learned to really value a hand-written note last year when I was sick-- and I did a pitiful job of that this semester. Right now, I'm reading "The Calling" by Brother Andrew. It's making me think a lot about what my purpose is. TODAY. It's so easy to get wrapped up in thinking about what our purpose is for the future and to forget about the purpose God has for us right now, today, wherever we are. Something to think about....
Before I sign off for the night, I have a couple prayer requests:
#1) My next CT scan and follow-up with Dr. Beck is on Wednesday. Pray for good results! Amber & I are planning to take our instruments and play for the patients and staff a little bit before my appointment. Pray that we would be a blessing and encouragement to those people.
#2) Mom and Dad have both been working lots and coming home drained at the end of the day. Pray that God would give them strength and endurance.
#3) There are many people suffering during this holiday season. Don't forget to lift them up in prayer and do what you can to reach out to them. You never know when something small you do will make a HUGE difference in someone else's life.
#4) A praise report from our little friend Darlynn. She finished radiation treatment today for her retinoblastoma. She is a little miracle and we're praising God for her!
Merry Christmas!!!
[ 1 comment ] ( 23 views ) | [ 0 trackbacks ] | permalink |
( 2.9 / 69 )Amber & I finished the last of our classes and finals today. We're headed home bright and early tomorrow morning. It's hard to believe an entire semester has passed already. "Time flies when you're having fun", they say, and we've certainly had fun this semester. Today was a bittersweet day. We've made so many wonderful friends and it was hard to say good-bye to them all. We're already looking forward to next semester-- new roommates, new tunes to learn, new people to meet, and new experiences to be had. As our good friend "Uncle Slick" likes to say, "you're only an adult once" so we're trying to make the most of each day.
This is a short blog tonight because I need to get to bed, but I am determined to write more soon. God bless!
[ add comment ] ( 20 views ) | [ 0 trackbacks ] | permalink |
( 3 / 67 )We've had an exciting weekend here in Levelland, Texas. It started bright and early Friday morning when my alarm went off at 5:50am. My friends Kacy and Peter and I went to Carlsbad Caverns for a tour of the cave. Amber didn't come with us because she injured her left foot and was on crutches.
We had a really great trip... lots of good conversations on the road, a visit to the Carlsbad zoo, tasty Mexican food for lunch, and then an awe-inspiring tour of the Lower cave. It was a three hour, ranger-guided tour and it was beautiful. We got to do some climbing and some crawling through the cave. My biggest impression of the whole thing was that God has a fantastic imagination! Upon arriving back in Levelland, we went straight to "Uncle Lester" and "Uncle Slick"'s place for homemade chicken noodle soup (compliments of Amber) and a wild game of Nertz (a card game). Amber began complaining that her left foot was really cold and hurting worse than it had been. After about an hour of keeping it elevated, it was still really cold and was starting to feel tingly. By then we decided that we need to take her to the emergency room to make sure she didn't have a blood clot or something serious going on. Little did we know that we would spend the entire night in the ER!
We found out that Amber's foot still doesn't appear to be broken on the X-ray, she does not have a blood clot, her lab work is fine, and she CAN stay awake all night! They put her in a walking boot, gave her a prescription for non-drowsy pain meds, and diagnosed her with Raynaud's Syndrome. Our friend Kacy was really sweet and came with us, and stayed up all night with us. We were finally dismissed from the hospital at about 7:30 am, went to IHOP for some breakfast, and called our "Uncles" to come pick us up. We are so blessed to have some really good friends here in Levelland who watch out for us and are quick to help us out in times of need. It is an amazing thing to know you have friends you can call on in the middle of the night!
We got back to Levelland at about 8:30 Saturday morning and went to bed! We finally woke up about 3:30pm, ate some dinner, played some music and went back to bed. I'm pretty sure Friday was the longest day of my life!
This morning, our bell choir performed at church and then there was a Thanksgiving dinner there. It was a good time of fellowship, and I really love the pastor here! We had some friends over for pumpkin bread and hot apple cider this afternoon, and now we're headed out to hear some friends perform. In this season of Thanksgiving, I am particularly thankful for the many wonderful people, both here and all around the country, whom I have the priviledge of calling "friends". Our family has been through a lot this past year, but we have not been through it alone. With God holding our hands, and our friends praying for us and encouraging us day by day, we have perservered. Thank you for the blessing of your friendship!
[ 1 comment ] ( 7 views ) | [ 0 trackbacks ] | permalink |
( 3 / 77 )
Calendar
