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Tuesday, April 19, 2005

Let Everything that has Breath Praise the Lord!

Daughter in Chicago, voicedialing on cell phone: Mom and Dad
rrrring...rrrring...rrrring...rrrring....please leave a message at the ...
Mother in Oregon: hello?
Daughter: Hi! What are you doing this afternoon?
Mother: Hello? (no sign of recognition) I'm reading...
Daughter: Oh, are you still reading Across Five Aprils?
Mother: no .... I'm ...
Daughter: Mom, can you hear me okay?
Mother: yes ... um ... it's Miss Julia Speaks Out
Daughter: Oh, you've changed books already, huh?
Mother: yes ...
Daughter: Mom, how is your blood sugar? When did you last test?
Mother: hmmm ... what?
Daughter: Mom, I think you need to eat something! Mom, can you hear me?
Mother: yes ... you say ... read? ...
Daughter: No, Mom! Please go get something to eat! Or get some juice!
Mother: I think I'm okay ...
Daughter: Mom! I'm going to call Dad. You get something to eat, okay? Mom?
Mother: hmmm
Daughter: Mom, I'll call Dad and call you back, okay? Eat something!
Daughter, calling father's cell phone: Dad?
Father: Yes? Oh, hi!
Daughter: Dad, how far are you from home? I think you'd better check on Mom. I just called her and she doesn't seem like she could understand me, and she couldn't put a whole sentence together.
Father: Oh, no... Her blood sugar must be really low. I'm pretty far from home.
Daughter: Well, if you know someone close to home, maybe they could get there faster.
Father: Thank you so much for calling... Oh! ... I'll get there as fast as I can.
Daughter: When you find out something, please call me!
Father: I will ... thank you!

Praying, praying, praying: God, protect her. Help her to hold on until someone gets there. Give her strength. Lord, thank you so much that she answered the phone!

That "daughter" is me. I call my mom frequently, but especially on Mondays, just to see how the weekend went, and because I know she calls her own mother (my Grandma Nelson) every Monday morning. I waited for Dad's return call through dinner with Mark, and just as we were leaving, he called. He had my uncle and aunt who live nearby head over there. They called the house first and the line was busy -- Mom hadn't even hung up the phone. They called 9-1-1, who had to go through the window because the house was locked. Mom was passed out and, after a glucagon shot, began to rouse.

Mom is back among us, he said. Whew! More tears. He thanked me again that I had called her, and had called him. What if, what if, what if? What if I hadn't called? What if she hadn't been able to answer the phone? What if it had been fifteen minutes later?

Thank You, Lord, that You know all those "what ifs" and chose to do what only You can do -- heal, give life, in perfect timing! I don't want to think about those "what ifs" anymore, only praise You for saving my Mom!