Matt finished working a two week stretch so we could have the time to come out here without adding time off work to our list of expenses. It was a trying two weeks, especially trying to get all of the paperwork, etc. together for our trip on my own. I thought I had accounted for the difficulty of being tired, and the hurdle of being in pain, but what I didn't account for on the list of things making preparations harder than ever was the absence of my mind.
Now anyone who has had a conversation or two with me knows it's like visiting your grandmother (and not just because I try to feed you all the sweets in my house); with phrases like, "have I told you the story about...?" or, "please stop me if I've asked you this before..." but it isn't just my memory that has been affected. In the frenzy of getting ready to go away, I also noticed that I have lost my ability to concentrate, multi-task, get motivated, prioritize (you know, all essential components of effective organisation); I didn't realise that I have, in essence, lost my mind.
Our travels went about as well as I expected. We made the drive early in the morning to Calgary so we could fly from there to Denver; from Denver, we had a bumpy, somewhat delayed flight due to thundershowers (the lightning show from the sky was both remarkable and frightening), and of course, because it wouldn't be a Thiel family trip if our luggage wasn't lost or damaged, we arrived in Kansas minus one very important detail: Jack's carseat. Fortunately, the airline was quick to give us a suitable loaner and deliver ours to the hotel when it arrived later today.
We found such a beautiful church to attend this morning, that I am sure if we lived here it would be our home parish. We test drove the route to the clinic to time our trip for tomorrow morning, and came back to the rain drying up and a warm, humid afternoon. Met a lovely couple from Arkansas out at the hotel pool (the gentleman being a survivor of Lyme thanks to his treatment in the States), and every step of the way I have been entirely grateful for Matt's parents travelling with us to give us their love and help and support.
Tomorrow morning we wake up bright and early, and so it shall begin! Our doctor was updated before leaving about my onset of seizure activity, and mentioned that because of that she would likely want to start me on IV antibiotics as soon as we return home. Now this of course is subject to change once we actually see her, but I am feeling hopeful and terrified all at once; after so long, this feels as though it is so "sudden," and I have been left wishing I had fit more in before I am destined to get even more ill for who knows how long. God has been keeping me close, though, and my heart is feeling steadier (if not entirely ready) for what is to come.
"My eager expectation and hope is that I shall not be put to shame in any way, but that with all boldness, now as always, Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me life is Christ, and death is gain." Philippians 1:20-21, emphasis added
"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.”
Genesis 50: 20-21
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