Reminders

Life is full of reminders or triggers.  Some are lovely, some are not.

Hear a song, go back to a special occasion.

Smell a certain smell, be transported back to grandma's kitchen.

See a special flower, remember a significant event.

While I was walking this morning I saw these lovely flowers and was transported back 9 years to the days after our big earthquake.  We were living at ECS and walking back and forth to the ECS apartment for cold showers, there was still no gas so no hot water.  There was a lovely vine covered wall of these beauties along the way.  They brought color and beauty to a trying time.

I hear the song Friends and go back to the days just before we came to Japan.  So many memories!

The Takayanagi Fox Festival in October will forever be a reminder of beginning of Joshy's battle with Aplastic Anemia.  He was in short stay so that we could do the 3km night hike.  We picked him up and he had a huge bruise.  The next day he was lethargic and became all but unresponsive.  This started what turned into a 6 month hospitalization and a battle he still fights to this day.

Tonight is the wake of a Christian brother.  He hadn't been feeling well and the doctors were trying to get to the bottom of the problem when he suffered a stroke on late Wednesday or early Thursday.  He passed away on Saturday evening.  He leaves behind a wife and two elementary age boys.  My heart is heavy for his family.  Saturday should be remembered as the 1st day of summer vacation not the day daddy went to heaven.  Tomorrow is Kashiwazaki's big fireworks display, it shouldn't be the day of a funeral.  I wonder if these special events will always bring back sad memories - I pray not.  I pray happy memories will cover over some of the sadness.

Please lift up the Sasaki family in your prayers.

Speed Of Sound

If one is a car, 0-60 in 3 second is crazy fast.  It's cool even.  

If one is a boy, 0-60 (0 = healthy / 60 = hospitalized) in a few hours is crazy fast, too.  It is, however, not cool!  Joshy seems to have this skill down to a science!   People think I am strange for noticing a single sneeze or cough.  Vick's Vapor Rub is also our constant friend.  At the slightest stuffiness the Vick's is pulled out and applied, even if no noticeable to the naked eye cold symptoms are seen, because by the time cold symptoms are truly present we are in the danger zone.  

This go around his excelleration was a little slow.  The first sign of congestion was Monday evening.  Tuesday he went to school with a slight runny nose.  Wednesday we kept him home with a very runny nose & a cough.  By Wednesday evening I called the ER because his heart rate was way high.  His Spo2 was still is the safe zone, as was his temperature, so we opted to ride the night out at home.  Thursday morning  he had reached the all I can do is sleep stage which earned us a direct pass to a ward.  Until last night (Friday) he was like this...

Last night he woke up.  He was happy, but not overly active.  Today is another story.  Just as he gets ill at the speed of sound he also seems to recover quickly once IV antibiotics are on board.  Today he has attempted to chew the netting over his IV.  He thinks the IV tubing is a lovely toy.  I mean, it makes cool noises when dropped.  The bits an bobbles are great to chew on.  If ones spins quickly enough it makes a rope to hog tie oneself... What's not to like???

Now that boy is feeling better being in the hospital is a full time job.  I am hopeful the doctor will decide that he is well enough to be sent home.  He does still have a cough and is not eating overly well yet, but he certainly is playing hard enough to work up an appetite!   LORD willing he will eat dinner, which will give me ammunition to help gain our freedom.

In the meantime, thank you for the prayers.  I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that prayer is the key to recovery.
 

Finding Rest

Everyone needs rest, but too often busyness takes over and rest gets pushed to the side.  Often we push the matter of rest aside for too long.  We stop listening to our bodies needs and force the good LORD to take matters into His own hands.  His way of providing rest isn't always to our liking.

Right now I am getting a bit of rest in a roundabout way.  I am keeping this guy company as he is content to sleep as he fight to overcome acute bronchitis.

I am content to sit here on his bed and read, play games, blog... As he snores.  I check his needs but for the most part there isn't much to do.

I know that this will change as he starts feeling better.  When he wakes up there will be entertaining to do, cords to keep untangled and attached, etcetera.  In the meantime I am attempting to rest.

Psalm 23:1-3

 
     The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
    he refreshes my soul.

Medical Merry-go-round

Saturday (7/9) Jerry saw the doctor - bronchitis.

Monday (7/11) I saw the cardiologist to get the lowdown on all my recent tests - all seems to be well.  Started a couple meds to get the fluid retention under control.  They are working well.

Tuesday (7/12) Was Joshy's monthly Cancer Center checkup - his counts are continuing on their climb toward normal.  He even gets to skip his August checkup!!

Thursday (today) I am back at the allergy doctor- Jerry shared his cold!  I now have antibiotics & cold meds on board.  I also picked up Kei & my asthma medicine.

English Camp starts tomorrow.  I am up to my eyeballs in preparation.  

The home stay to Indiana is fast approaching.  

Life is beyond CrAZy right now!

This morning, after dropping Joshy off at short stay, we headed to the mountains.   A missionary family we know are heading out on a 15 day camping adventure and their 1st stop is in our prefecture.  We finally settle on a plan to meet up at Naena Waterfall in Myoko.  Naena Waterfall is one of the top 100 waterfalls in Japan.  Jerry & I had gone there a couple years ago, and it just seemed like a good place to meet for a picnic lunch - we weren't disappointed. 

On the way, we took the time to stop at Imori Ike, also in Myoko.  Imori Ike is famous for it's view & reflection of Mt. Myoko.  There was a lovely, wheelchair friendly, path around the pond - something to keep in mind for some future outing with a certain young man.

 

 

 

Next we headed to the waterfall, a short 4.5km drive... IF your GPS doesn't decide to take you on an adventure.  According to the GPS we had arrived... ummmm... maybe at the top of the waterfall but not at the bottom where we were intending to go. We sent a message to our friends, turned around and headed back down the mountain, only to PASS our friends on their way up.  At least their GPS was sending them to the same wrong place! 

After arriving at the correct spot, we enjoyed a picnic by the river.

  

Lots of exploring, climbing, & hiking.

 

 

 Just to look at the various angles of this beautiful work of the LORD.

 

 We finished our time together with a treat at Cafe Gland.  

Thankful their food was much better than their spelling.

It was a wonderful time of fellowship & fun friendship building.  BTW - we are hoping that including the kids in the afternoon treat wasn't against the rules.

Laughter is good medicine!