I asked...

Being raised in the Quaker Faith,

I was taught from an early age

to ignore material pleasures. 

When I moved onto Gatlin Court, my neighbor was a very religious woman. We became very good friends. I loved Diane, she was fun, sincere and had a heart of gold. We shared birthdays, anniversaries and sorrows.  Diane was a member of a very large church that had a movie theater, a cafe, a coffee shop, a book store, and even a gym. 

One day we were talking and she told me she wanted an apple themed tea kettle for Christmas and had been asking God for one in her prayers.

What?

You can ask God for material things?

That moment has always stood out for me

as I ponder moments of my life.

Another dear friend, Barbara,is a deeply prayerful lady with a vast knowledge of scripture. She can quote just about any one you ask her to.  She is a non-believer of organized religion, choosing to live her faith among the people. Paying a large electric bill for a large building is not in her beliefs, she prefers to spend her tithes on people in need. Barbara spends several days a week driving around our town helping strangers with gas, food, and transportation. All she asks in return is their permission to pray for them.

I told her one day that I have been praying for patience for most of my adult life, really since our kids reached puberty, I needed it, I thought. So I prayed each day for more patience.  Barbara's view on my prayer request was not a good one. Her view was one of, "you get what you pray for". Therefor, if I pray for patience, I will be given trials so that my patience can be given. 

What? 

You can ask God for one thing

and end up with another?

Now, why have I chosen this subject to share with the world today?  

I hadn't blogged in a while and wanted to post a bit about my life. But as I read my blog roll last night (as I do every night), I saw other bloggers excited to share their new lamp, or a trip to the thrift store, or a new planter, or a new place setting. I love those blogs, but I just can't seem to get as excited about my stuff as they do. Stuff like my new cake stand. It was a special gift, it is antique and is just beautiful. But it is just a thing, among many other things, I live with and use. It just didn't seem important.

This past week, our little K.R. had open heart surgery, four procedures in the heart and one big one just outside. The doctors prognosis was bad, "if he lives" through the surgery, "if he lives through" the night, and the second surgery, if the medicine works, if his pacemaker fixes his heart rhythm, and on and on.

I prayed for a miracle, to keep this little boy alive, for his doctors skills and education, and strength for his mommy and daddy. I even asked people of different faiths to ask their higher power to pitch in on the prayers.  I became a prayer seeker. I asked everyone to send positive energy to this little guy as he travels this medical journey. I prayed so hard, my knees got sore.

I sat here this morning, ready to tell all of you about my new cake stand, but it just didn't seem important. So I am asking all of you for prayers and positive thoughts for our little 2 month old K.R.

 He is a miracle.

The artery between his lungs and heart was clogged and constricted, his oxygen levels were dropping so they opened his chest to repair the damaged artery.  They placed him on the heart/lung machine and transferred his blood to the machine and stopped his heart. But he kept bleeding.  They kept repairing and then discovered he had TWO arteries!  This is what has kept him alive since birth, no one knew it was there, it wasn't detected on any tests, and the doctors had never seen anything like it before. They were completely taken by surprise and just couldn't explain it. 

Was this a miracle?

Had my prayers been answered?

It doesn't matter how you pray, or even if you call it prayer, or what religion you are, or even if you aren't religious, please take a moment and send him positive thoughts. He still needs to get off the ventilator, for the swelling and fluids to go down and for his chest to be closed. Mom and Dad have been staying in his room around the clock for over a week now. They need to get back to work to keep him double insured, at present, their co-pays are over $150,000.

Maybe I will tell you all about my new cake stand next time... after my prayers for K.R. have been given and he is back home in his favorite swing.