The Hem of His Garment: One Touch (Press)

This is kind of a long passage of scripture to quote, but I feel like we need the context rather than just a line. This has been heavy on my heart lately.

Mark 5:22-43 King James Version (KJV)
22 And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,

23 And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.

24 And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.

25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,

26 And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,

27 When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment.

28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.

29 And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.

30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?

31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?

32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.

33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.

34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

There’s a song from several years ago by Nicole C Mullen called One Touch (Press). It’s about the woman with the “issue of blood”. She had such faith that she just knew Jesus would have the answer. She went to find him. He was going somewhere else, so she really didn’t want to be a bother. The crowd was so thick. There were so many needs.

She knew she needed to get near him. She knew that if she could just touch the hem of his garment that she would be healed. In the song, there’s a line that says, “If I could just press my way through this madness”… Do you ever feel that way? The madness is swirling around all the time. The One who brings peace and healing is there in the midst of it all. We only need to reach out to Him in faith.

Chronicles of a Helicopter Mom

What have I become? I’ve become a smother! My child has spent ten days with me hovering over his every move, reminding him to fall sideways if he loses his balance, asking him if he has brushed his teeth, and then reminding him to be careful when he does. Oy! Even I don’t like this version of myself. He’s my fourth child. Isn’t it time for me to be settled into this motherhood gig like, “Meh, I got this,” but no. Not for the last ten days anyway. I want to hold him by the back of the shirt as if that will somehow keep him from falling and breaking his foot. What on Earth? What can a momma do? I mean, there is to be NO weight on this foot that has been in a half cast and wad of cotton and Ace bandage; Nothing standing between this foot and disaster except me and my incessant reminders and warnings of impending doom!

  • Second half cast coming off!

    Hallelujah! And on the tenth day the Lord said, “Let there be a hard cast and peace in a mother’s heart!” So now I feel like there is some protection in case of any incidents that may arise. There was one fall on day eight while this Helicopter Mom was gone showing property. The son fell in the hallway. Apparently all my nagging reminders of falling sideways into the wall if he felt himself losing balance paid off! Instead of the wall, he flung his foot out and fell on his behind. Well, at least he didn’t break his foot, and his booty is just fine. Both father and son were in agreement that they were glad Momma wasn’t home to make a federal case out if it.

    • The Bullet and The Wedge

    On day four when he was put into the second half cast with his foot repositioned, his heel pain was alleviated. This last unveiling revealed that the swelling is mostly gone and the arch is becoming visible. The X-ray comparison is what really blew me away though! Look! There’s an arch!

    • Ready to go!

    So now I feel like I can breathe a little sigh of relief and remove my Helicopter Mom name badge. Maybe for a little while anyway. After all, we’re just getting started.

    Working Our Way Out of a Job aka Parenting

    The goal of parenting is to raise good, independent adults, right? We are supposed to work our way out of a job. Sometimes we wonder if they’re actually learning or listening to any of the things we say. Well, let me tell you a good way to gauge their burgeoning independence; have them hobble around on one foot for a while. The whole world is made of lava to the other foot. Absolutely NO touching the ground allowed!

    His surgery was last Tuesday, and there has been a lot of lying around on sofas, fluffing pillows, rotating ice packs, dispensing of meds every three hours around the clock, water refills, snacks, and lots of helicoptering by Mom. This is the part where I realize how much he does do on his own. It has strangely been a reminder of what it’s like to have a baby. It’s been a while, y’all. He’s 13 now, and under normal circumstances he actually does do a lot for himself. I know for sure, because right now I’m the one doing all the things. So, I have reassurance that I’m doing something right!

    • Removing original dressings

    On Friday we had the first post-op follow-up. The dressings were removed, incisions were examined, and that Achilles tendon…oh, Lord, help me!…that Achilles tendon was stretched [insert into this moment a passing out mom who was playing it cool]. A new half cast was formed to his foot with some flexion. I’m not even sure I can talk about that process. Ouch!! Next Friday will include x-rays and a new hard cast. I know I’ll be less of a helicopter mom when that foot is encased in plaster…or whatever it is they use these days.

    • New bandages before the new half cast with flexion

    I have to say how very proud I am of my son. He has been very strong, especially knowing he’ll be doing it again to the other foot in a few weeks. After all, now he knows what he’s getting into.

    Week 35, 1 day: Flat Feet

    Calcaneal opening wedge osteotomy, subtalar joint arthroereisis, and percutaneous Achilles lengthening

    My Baby’s Foot

    Yikes! That’s a mouthful! In other words: Surgery for flat feet. A few short months ago, we didn’t even know this was a thing. We knew the son’s feet were flat…like, really flat…but we didn’t know anything could be done about it or that anything needed to be done about it. The complaints about foot pain and knee pain have gradually become more frequent. Now at the age of thirteen, the growth spurts have become more extreme and have led to increased pain. Today, one of those size 10/11 feet got an arch put into it! I’m amazed and can’t wait to see it uncovered on Friday. The surgeon did bring out an x-ray photo on a strip of paper like you get when you have an ultrasound. I told her it has been a long time since I’ve had a picture like that. Congratulations, it’s an arch!!

    The Bullet and The Wedge

    Do you or someone you know have flat feet? Join us on the journey!

    Since I finally got my blog set up and practiced entering some things I had previously written and added one new episode of #LibraryThoughts yesterday, I thought this is as good a time as any to write about this experience and chronicle the journey. This is Day One of a three month journey. There will be many changes over the next six weeks. At that time, it’ll be the right foot with another six week recovery.

    The 3 R’s; Rest, Recharge, Reflect

    Week 17: The 3 R’s; Rest, Recharge, Reflect

    *Originally written Feb, 11, 2019*

    Today’s #LibraryThoughts are coming late in the day from my sofa. Yesterday as I planned my Monday, a very full Monday, I was thinking about how I was actually resting and how I might write about that today. You see, there were some errands I needed to run yesterday, but I was feeling tired, a bit fragile even…like the cold and rain might sweep me away. I just needed a day of REST. I was planning for Monday and figured out how I’d coordinate those errands into the mix and allow myself a day to RECHARGE.

    I woke up this morning ready to hit the ground running for a day of the #FullTiltBoogie to find my kiddo curled up on the sofa taken out with the stomach virus that’s going around. Ugh…

    So, another day at home? Well, don’t get me wrong, there has been a lot of work from the laptop and the phone, but from home. The last week of January marked two years since I’ve been going full speed ahead with zero breaks. I don’t exaggerate. Two. Years.

    Yesterday afforded me the time to REFLECT on these last two crazy years. I reflected on goals for the future. That’s what really led me to push those errands off to the next day. The thing I realized it that the pace of full-on-crazy isn’t sustainable. So I took the day to rest. Today, the change in my plans wasn’t my idea, but Nate was on one sofa sleeping as my eyes grew heavy. I stretched out on the other sofa and took a nap. Two days of rest in a row? Two. Days. Apparently I needed that. REALLY needed it.

    I’ve always said that we have our plans, and God has His…and His are always better. I’m going to accept the gift of two days of REST in a row, RECHARGE for what is to come, and remember to REFLECT on the blessings of each day.

    As for those errands….
    After all, tomorrow is another day.

    #AmysAmazingAdventures #ResetandRestore #HealthandHome

    Life is Hard

    Week 5: Life is hard.

    *Originally written Nov 19, 2018*

    Now there’s a profound statement, right? I bet I’m not telling you something you didn’t already know. Well, we all know that in this world we will have troubles. We all know the things we deal with personally, and we’re often reminded to be kind to others and how we don’t know what they’re going through. Maybe they’ve just lost a loved one, received a scary diagnosis, have a child serving overseas, endure daily physical pain, have little kids that never sleep, hate their job, or maybe they’re just nasty and hateful. Who knows? Imagine if we all just lived according to The Golden Rule: Treat others the way that you would like to be treated. In the Bible it’s said more like this, and I paraphrase: Love God with everything within you, and love your neighbor as yourself. We truly never know what is going on in the lives and hearts of someone else. We would all do well to remember that when someone forces us to flip on our blinker and merge onto the offramp that leads to the high road.

    I once read a poem called “Sandpaper People”. I wonder if I could find that again. 🤔Anyway…it has to do with the people who are irritating, rough, and rub up against us wrong. These people are everywhere, aren’t they? Some are a one-time deal in line at the store or while driving. Some are people we must encounter repeatedly in our jobs or at the school drop off/pick up line. I may very well, albeit unintentionally, be someone else’s Sandpaper Person. (Sorry about that, but allow me to explain.) The gist of the poem is that these people rub at us and, as annoying or even painful as it may be, they polish us into a more refined version of ourselves. We all have rough edges that need some smoothing. When I irritate you, please keep in mind that I’m polishing you, and I’ll do the same. Deal? 😉

    #LibraryThoughts #AmysAmazingAdventures #ResetandRestore