My Marvelous Mom

Many of my regular readers know and love my mom and have asked for a report on her recent stroke. I would like to thank each one of them in her behalf for the care and concern they communicated to us by email and Facebook. We definitely felt those prayers!

On Saturday, August 3rd, our family went through quite a scare with my 86-year-old mother. She'd had a TIA recently (in addition to a couple of others in the past), so she and my stepfather initially assumed the "real deal" was simply another one of the fleeting episodes she'd experienced before. The incident began with garbled speech and difficulty reading the puzzle she was doing. By the time it ended, she was unable to speak or read at all. Her memory was affected, too, and the only answer she could come up with to the competency questions was her name.

Happily, Sunday the 4th was a remarkable day of healing for Mom. As the hours passed, she went from recalling only her name and speaking in monosyllabic sentences to communicating and remembering pretty well. In fact, by the time I arrived that evening, she was able to carry on a full conversation, though it was clear she was having to reach for some of the words. Mom felt a bit groggy, but her diction was perfect; and her memory was nearly 100%.

On Monday the 5th, our favorite patient continued to improve by leaps and bounds. Last Tuesday, we were delighted and grateful to leave the hospital and take her home. When they drove me to the airport Saturday, she was doing as well as ever...a truly amazing recovery, made even sweeter by the fact that August 12th marked their 41st wedding anniversary. Mom and the most thankful and relieved husband in the history of husbands celebrated with some of their best friends, who were as thrilled as we all were to see them hand-in-hand for the big day.

One of the most touching parts of being with Mom and Dick last week was observing their love for one another in action. He is such a tender caretaker, and each night they take turns leading a family prayer. Without fail, the two of them express gratitude to the Lord for their years together and ask for as much time here as He is willing to give them.

I hope He gives them many more years, and I am more grateful than words can tell that my mom is still with us...in every sense of the word.

Do you know how cherished you are, Mom? Not just by us, your children; not just by your husband, but by so many friends who reached out to you. Everyone was calling, bringing in a meal, or just wanting to visit. I guess it's true that what goes around comes around, and you deserve every bit of it.

Sure do love you!

{love being your daughter, too}

♥♥♥

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