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Supportive Parkinsonians

Posted by eph21920 on October 8, 2016 in Answer, Connected, Doctor, Family, Grateful, Knowledge

My mom found out about a Parkinson’s support group several years ago and had thought often about going, but never did. We recently decided to make it a priority. Today my mom, sister, and I went to the group. It was “football month”, so my sister and I wore our team garb. We were greeted at the door by a woman who introduced herself and sent us along to the check-in table where more friendly women welcomed us. They gave us name tags and an information sheet to fill out and showed us to the “newcomer’s table”. I had been in email contact with the president of the group who came over and introduced himself. As I looked around the room, I saw people of all ages who showed different symptoms and severity of Parkinson’s. It was quite interesting to see this diverse, yet connected group all together. The meeting of about 130 people started the same as most with some business to take care of. The main speaker was a doctor who has been doing research on Parkinson’s for many years. He talked technical and medical and I got lost a few times, but I was able to understand most of it. He explained what happens to the cells in the part of the brain that causes the disease. He talked about how the medications that my mom is taking affect the body. His enthusiasm grew as he went on to tell about a new drug he has been testing. I found the whole presentation fascinating. After the speaker there was a potluck lunch and the “newcomers” were invited to be first through the line. We received a newsletter that was full of information. The person who was in charge of the caregiver’s group came over and invited my sister and I to come to their next meeting. While it was a long morning for my mom, she enjoyed the group. It was uplifting to realize that she is not alone in this battle. We met some great people and learned a lot.

I Found God today in the support of others experiencing the same disease as my mom.

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Fall Day at the Cabin

Posted by eph21920 on October 6, 2016 in Creation, Family, Food, Friends, Grateful

Yesterday, my mom, dad and I headed to the cabin in the mountains. It was the first time my mom had been there in months. We brought along the oxygen monitor as suggested by the cardiologist, just to keep an eye on things. She did great and so did my dad. The scenery was just gorgeous on the way up. Pockets of yellow aspen trees dotted the landscape in among the evergreens. We spotted a young buck near the side of the road and stopped to take some pictures. He obliged as he stood tall and struck several poses. Just before we got to our place, we honked at a friend’s house to announce our arrival. He came over and spent the day helping my dad get some winterizing projects done. He calls my dad his “Little Buddy” and my dad calls him “Big John”. The size difference is remarkable – so much now that my dad jokingly asked his friend if he was still growing. For lunch I made a big pot of chicken soup using some vegetables from my sister’s garden. I put the finishing touches on the apple pie that my mom made the crust for and put it in the oven. There is nothing like the smell of a pot of soup and apple pie on a chilly fall day. But eating them was even better. We headed home just before dusk and spotted so many deer we couldn’t keep count. We even saw a few elk. It was a tiring day, but such a nice break for the three of us. We were all very grateful.

I Found God today enjoying the small details of a fall day.

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Beautiful Pie Crust

Posted by eph21920 on October 4, 2016 in Family, Food, Knowledge

Today at the caregiver’s support group, we talked about how different cultures view their elderly people. In our culture at this time, there are too many instances in which our aging population are forgotten about, seemingly a burden or an just an obligation. While in other cultures, the older people have wisdom and have much to teach the younger generation. Tomorrow we are getting together with a friend for lunch. I wanted to make an autumn dessert and thought of apple pie. I have tried to make a homemade pie crust in the past and it turned out terrible, so I was ready to get one of those ready made kind from the grocery store. My mother used to make a fantastic pie crust and said she would make it, even though she hasn’t done it for 20 years. This evening she found her favorite recipe and started in. I watched as she carefully measured the proper amount of ingredients and started rolling it out. As she worked, we talked about the bakery her father owned and she lived in when she was a child. She learned his techniques and skill. She meticulously added a sprinkle of water here and there as needed so the crust would not break up, yet not be too moist. It turned out beautiful. We decided we need to do it more often. I learn things from my parents all the time, but this was a concrete example of the contribution and impact my mother still makes on me which will trickle down to whoever might want to listen to me.

I Found God today as I continue to learn from my mother.

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Heart of the Matter

Posted by eph21920 on October 3, 2016 in Creation, Jesus

As I was thinking about what to write in this blog tonight, I suddenly became keenly aware of my own heartbeat. It was distracting for while, but then I realized that my heart is beating because God wills it to. I can worry about the health of my parents and myself, but God has created each of us and knows our bodies perfectly. He is in each breath, each action, each thought. Our hearts are unique in that not only are they a physical part of our body, but we talk of our heart as the emotional point of ourselves. When we fall in love, our hearts belong to that person. When we are hurt by someone, we suffer heartache. When we want to have a closer relationship with God, we ask Him to come into our heart. I have several different pictures of Jesus, but those that intrigue me and have the most meaning to me are those depicting His Sacred Heart. To me they are very intense as they depict the immense love Jesus has for us – his beloved people.

I Found God today in my own beating heart.

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Trust

Posted by eph21920 on October 2, 2016 in Answer, Faith, Life, Plan, Problem

Today at church, we heard part of scripture from Habakkuk who was a prophet from the Old Testament. He cried out to God, complaining of his plight and the troubles of the people, and God answered him. The priest explained we may feel the same as the prophet as many of the same things are happening in our world right now. “How long, O LORD, must I cry for help and you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” and you do not intervene? Why do you let me see iniquity? Why do you simply gaze at evil? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife and discord.”  God’s answer was TRUST. Trust that His plan is unfolding in His time. I thought about the events in my own life when I literally cried out to God to make it stop. While the situation didn’t necessarily come to an end, after time I was able to see how God was still with me through it and that I was a different and better person. It is hard to trust when things go wrong according to what I think should be happening. But, I don’t know what the effect is or will be on myself or on other people. I know for sure that what I want isn’t always the best thing. Thank God He is God and I am not.

I Found God today in a reminder to trust Him and that His plan will come to fruition.

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Influential People

Posted by eph21920 on October 1, 2016 in Connected, Faith, Family, Grateful, Life, Relationship

Last night as part of my prayer, I made a list of those who have helped me along in my faith life. My mother was at the top and I went from there writing down friends, family, priests, and mentors. I could remember a few specific conversations I had with people that spoke to my heart. Some people I only had a brief contact with, others I still speak with regularly. As I thought about this, I recognized how many people have made an impact on my faith – many probably don’t even realize it. Some really challenged me, others showed me patience and love when I needed it the most. I prayed for each one I thought of and am so grateful for these people that have been placed in my life.

I Found God today remembering all those who have helped my grow in faith.

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Resolving Another Frustration

Posted by eph21920 on September 30, 2016 in Answer, Doctor, Faith, Family, Problem

As usual after a hospital stay, my mom received some new medications to take. When we visited her primary care doctor, he said to keep taking them and sent out an order. I checked on it yesterday and it was to be shipped out. Unfortunately, she was on her last dose. I started making phone calls to see if we could get enough to hold her over. After not hearing anything yesterday, I got on the phone again early this morning. There was a problem finding the specific drug at all in the city, but our normal pharmacy tracked some down at another location. After a few hours, I called them and learned that there was an issue with the insurance that needed to be resolved. I was told to call back in the afternoon. When I called back, I was on hold for almost an hour before I actually spoke to someone. The pharmacist said the problem was not yet corrected and that they would look into it and call me back. Figuring it would be a while, I went ahead and made dinner. By the end of the meal and not hearing back, I was getting frustrated once again. I decided to just take the trip down to the pharmacy and plant myself there until I got some medication for my mom. I was just getting my shoes on when the phone rang. It was the pharmacy. They spoke to the insurance company, got what they needed, and the prescription was ready to be picked up. I sang and danced and thanked God profusely.

I Found God today in a resolved problem and avoiding more frustration.

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Calmed by Creation

Posted by eph21920 on September 29, 2016 in Answer, Creation, Doctor, Faith, Grateful, Life

Today I took my mom to another doctor’s appointment. This one was very frustrating as the communication with this doctor is always lacking and we never get help or answers or information when we need it the most, such as when my mom was having a difficult time in rehab. When I talked to the doctor about my frustration, she basically told me the problem was in those who answer the phones and I needed to talk with their manager. No apology, no follow up. My mom and I waited for the manager until we could wait no more. This afternoon, I received a call from the manager who did apologize and told me about more miscommunication between her, the doctor, and us. I could feel my blood pressure rising. When I hung up, I went out for a brisk walk. As I walked, I kept thinking about the situation and getting angry all over again. Not wanting to go down that road, I shook my head and looked at the mountains. I remembered some scripture I have been reading that focus on God’s creation. I decided that was a better way to occupy my mind. I looked all around to acknowledge the awesome living world. There were the birds, bees, butterflies, and squirrels. There were countless plants blowing in the wind and trees with multicolored leaves – some of which were swirling along the ground. I came to the park and watched a young woman playing with a toddler who was full of enthusiasm. School had just ended, so I shared the sidewalk with some high school youth laden with overloaded backpacks. A school bus stopped to let more energetic kids out who were crowing like roosters. The sidewalks were full of children and parents making their way home. When I returned to the house, I stopped for a moment and admired the mums that I planted in some pots last year that are now returning to life. I thanked God for all the creation that I witnessed and noticed that I was considerably more calm.

I Found God today by finding peace in pondering His creation.

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Assigned Doors

Posted by eph21920 on September 28, 2016 in Answer, Faith, Friends, Grateful, Healing, Sick, Trust

Recently, a friend’s husband had emergency open heart surgery. She set up a website where she has been posting updates for the past couple of weeks. He has been improving, but it has not been a smooth road. There was a trip back to the emergency room after going home and now he has to give himself shots. Even though he still has a long road and quite a bit of recovery to go, she writes about the positive things the day has brought. She writes about how grateful she is for friends and family. And she praises God through it all. Here is a bit of what she wrote today:

Again, we praise the Lord for His continual protection over Ron and are reminded of the words of David in the Psalms:  “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most high will rest in the shadow of the Almighty, I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’ ” Psalm 91.  As we learn to be at rest under the mighty power and infinite wisdom of God, we find that we can acquire a greater peace with the ups and downs of life knowing that, ultimately, God is the One – not us – Who is truly in control. The various “doors” that we need to go through in our lives as humans are not always doors we choose. Sometimes they are assigned, and when they are, we can feel more confident to approach them when we’re reminded that God Himself holds the keys.

I Found God today through an inspiring, trusting, faithful woman.

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Encouraging Support Group

Posted by eph21920 on September 27, 2016 in Answer, Connected, Grateful, Hope

Today I went to the caregivers support group that I have been going to for a couple of weeks now. It has already been such a help from resources to every day ideas to thinking about things in a different way. This afternoon one of the ladies talked about how much she was struggling in caring for her mother. She had some difficult decisions to make in order to bring peace to her, her family, and her mother. Once she started talking, everything came out. It was clear that she was holding in a lot of emotion and needed to release it. The group listened and made suggestions, but mostly they supported her. People said things like, “you are not a bad person”, “you are a loving daughter”, “you can get out of your comfort zone and it will be OK”. I felt so blessed to be part of group that truly understands one another even though the situations are different. The encouragement that flowed from the afternoon was uplifting for everyone there.

I Found God today in the blessing of an encouraging group of people.

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