Merry Christmas

It is Christmas day, one of the few times of year most stores are closed and churches have an influx of people. This is also the day that children anticipate and look forward to opening gifts. Unfortunately, the real significance of this celebration has become obscure.

All throughout the Old Testament, we read foreshadows and prophecies of a coming Messiah. Reading the gospels, especially early chapters of Matthew and Luke, we see the birth of Jesus fulfilled everything that was foretold. He then lived, died, and rose again so that we may have the free gift of salvation. (Romans 6:23)

Receiving gifts at Christmas can be fun, but no toys, books, clothes, or even model trains, can come close to what we have been given in Christ. Objects we receive eventually wear down, break, or become less interesting over time. The birth of our Savior has no expiration date and has eternal blessings that will never fade.

Just like packages under a tree, God's gift doesn't require any amount of works or payment to be received. If we worked or paid for something; it is an obligation, not a gift. We cannot work to cover our sins and attempt pay off our sin debt. God gave us what we could never get on our own as the ultimate gift.

Stores start offering Christmas sales, and decorations, almost in mid-summer. We forget that this day is not about what we can receive, but what we were given 2,000 years ago. All who repent of their sins (lying, theft, adultery, blaspheming, etc.) and trust in Christ alone for salvation have received His ultimate gift.

As we go throughout the year ahead, let us not forget what has been given to us. It isn't just for one day either, but for eternity. Lights and decorations may not be up, but we can celebrate this Christmas gift every day and tell others how to receive it as well. Merry Christmas!

It's Going Around

In Genesis 1, God declared everything as very good at the end of creation week. Their was no death, disease, disabilities, or disasters. Unfortunately, the entrance of sin brought the curse on all of creation and we are now living in a fallen world that includes all these problems. This week, I've heard about a few different illnesses going around that have affected several people.

Yesterday, my mom's family was scheduled to get together for our Christmas party. Mom had prepared food to bring and we were looking forward to seeing more of our family again. However, a few phone calls Friday evening postponed the party for a few months due to some families not feeling well and precaution for others. My dad's mother was also planning to join us for lunch today, but she has something going on as well and also canceled.

Therefore, just my parents and I have the weekend together and a large grape dish that was intended for 20 people or more. It's good that we all like grapes, but we may be tired of them after multiple servings per day for several days. However, it's better than food going to waste and throwing it out.

Locally, I have heard of schools closing due to staff shortages or most of the student body being sick. I talked with a couple friends on Friday from other states and it sounds like they are having the same experiences.

With everyone quarantined for about a year, immune systems didn't have opportunity to get exposed to much and became weaker. Constantly cleaning everything also increased this and contributed to decreased immune exposure. Personally, I expected something like this to come, but it can also just be a strong strain of the flu.

Any type of problem should make us look to God more and His free gift of salvation. No matter what we suffer in this world, it's nothing compared to the eternal punishment in hell. They also help us to look forward to heaven and relief from earthly sorrow.

Thankfully, I have been well and just have the regular quad life challenges. This week is forecast to be extremely cold, so I will likely be staying warm inside the house and away from people.

New Neighbor

I spend most of my time in my bedroom, sitting or laying in my bed. The walls and everything around me are very familiar, as well as the sounds that come drifting down the hall. I know what the dish washer and refrigerator sound like from my perch in the west wing of the house.

My nearest neighbor in the house is the laundry room. Almost every day, except Sunday, at least one load of laundry is either washing or drying. The sound of the laundry equipment, just on the other side of the wall in front of me, is a frequent background noise that drums along as I go about my daily routine.

For well over twenty years, I have had the same washer and dryer as my neighbor. The washer has had a number of health challenges with some of its parts wearing down and increasing in noise as problems increase. However, dad has been faithful to take my neighbor out to the clinic in the garage and carefully do surgery with various hammers to replace outdated organs. Sadly, despite three procedures this year alone, my old neighbor became too ill. Dad carefully tried to get a few more cycles out of it, but Neptune was done. She had spun her last load and with a bent shaft to her drum, she was all washed up.

Last week, while I dealt with neck trouble, my new neighbor moved in next door. This neighbor has a much larger appetite than its predecessor and eats more laundry in one gulp than we had before. While the old neighbor was sounded similar to an aircraft taking off, this one has all new sounds to learn.

I think it is similar to me and doesn't always want to get going. After being fed with shirts, shorts, and more, it makes some gurgles before going silent a few seconds later. The process repeats a few times before finally starting to process the meal of cotton and synthetic. I'm getting used to the sounds, but it's taking time. Late this week, my new neighbor's partner in laundry should arrive as well. It has been getting along with the old dryer reasonably well, but mom thought it would be best to have all new neighbors of the same age and model.

Living the quad life has its perks, even when laundry facilities take on a life of their own.

Seven-Year Break

Most weeks are repeats from previous ones. However, others can result in major changes that were unexpected. This past week was one that ended up being very unexpected, and sometimes scary.

On Sunday, November 27, mom suctioned as I felt junk in my lungs. She noticed my trach button was sunk in more than normal and it was hard to remove the closure plug. When the button was changed in October, I did see it didn't stick out as far as my previous button. That night, I had my nurse setup a mirror for me to see, and it was indeed very sunk in. On Monday, I messaged my doctor and saw it had gone further in over night.

Tuesday, November 29

This was a new experience for me and not one I had heard about before. Given how quickly the button was submerging in my throat, I expected it to slip all the way down and block my airway. Sitting up, it wasn't as covered by my neck, so I increased my time upright and laid flat for shorter periods. While down, I tried to minimize movement and just watch videos. My night nurse talked about different tools he had to try to extract it if needed, but I wasn't sure. Trying not to take deep breaths, I still envisioned not being able to breathe at any time. I continued to pray and trust God's plan through it all.

My ENT finally returned my call Tuesday afternoon and I got scheduled to see him Thursday morning. For two more days, my caregivers and I played a game of moving my skin, minimizing activity and flat time, and praying I could keep breathing.

The appointment came on a cold December 1st. With the button nearly submerged in my neck, I wasn't sure how the doctor would remove it. After numbing the area, he got the closure plug out by hand and used a clamp to pry the button's outer part from my throat. With the button free from my stoma, the ENT put in my backup trach set I prepared the day before.

I had seven years and just over one month without using a trach. It was something I never expected to achieve and am thankful for the time I had. Since the switch, my body has been adjusting with my oxygen and heart rate bouncing around like a yo-yo, especially at night. I have had little energy and a fair amount of pain.

Thankfully, everything was starting to stabilize by Saturday afternoon, but I'm still doing minimal activity while flat. I had a trach full-time for over thirty years, but I'm adjusting to feeling it in my throat again and how to clear my lungs to reduce suctioning. I am hoping to return to the button again in spring, but I know the quad life can change quickly. This coming week will hopefully be calmer, but I trust in God's plan, whatever may come.