A Long Stretch

Last night, Dean struck me in the middle of the night. Yes, he's done it before--just stretched his arm over to see if I'm still in bed, but making contact with my nose instead. It's similar to what we do to each other verbally during the day.

We don't mean it. It just happens. And like after our nocturnal mishap, it doesn't take long to forgive each other and move on. Caregiving is fraught with episodes of close verbal contact, that often end up as the "crash and clash" variety.

This is one time Dean's short term memory does us both good though. I need to apologize right away before he forgets the experience. And he needs to apologize right away for the same reason. It sure works for us.

Quick repentance and forgiveness is one lesson the Lord has taught me through this caregiving journey. Life is too short for grudges, guilt, and remorse. It's best to come clean as soon as possible. Even when you get slugged in the face in the middle of the night.

Super-caregiver Sister

There's only one kind of stress that equals that of a caregiver that I can think of, and that's the stress of an educator. Especially a teacher in the middle grades. My sister-in-law falls in this category, but she also has the distinction of being a caregiver. I don't see how she copes with all life is handing her right now. Throw in almost an hour commute each way to school and you can see why I look up to her as a super-caregiver. She and my brother both have enormous family and job responsibilities, and I know it can only be by the grace of God that they can make it through each day.

The reason they are on my mind particularly this evening is that today my sister was hurt at school, trying to break up a fight among some students. She's not seriously injured, but will have to wear a half-cast on her left arm till the tendons heal. She was bruised up enough to be sent to the hospital for evaluation. How tedious it will be for her to type and do many of her teaching tasks after this mishap. We're just thankful she wasn't hurt more seriously.

Whenever any of us feel that our life is spinning out of control, it is often only our faith that keeps us going. This is the main theme of my blog. I want people to know that when we are in the middle of trying times, God is there with us. Sometimes it's even easier to see Him then than when things are going smoothly. We seem to lose sight of Him in the good times. But God is everywhere.

And that's why I will never run out of material for this blog. Look for Him in your life. He is always as close as you will have Him.

Fighting a Cold

If there's one event that stands out in my daily life, it's coming down with a cold. Therefore today an outstanding event occurred. I'm coming down with a cold! And I do mean DOWN. Due to my restrictive lung disease, an average person's worst cold in their life, rates as one of my average ones.

There's just no way life will go on as normal for me the next few weeks. I will be using a nebulizer and  prescription meds to conquer this thing and not end up in the hospital. Natural remedies don't seem to make a dent in my recovery (and believe me, I've tried them all). With the exception of drinking lots of water to stay hydrated, and resting, at least as much as possible for a caregiver. (Lots of microwave meals this week for hubby!)

It's taken years to master my cold remedy regimen, but I think I'm prepared to tackle another bout with my worst enemy, Mr. Nasty Cold. I got to thinking about another regimen we all had better master though. How to handle Mr. Nasty Temptation. He tries to get us down on occasion too, but do we know how to minimize the effects of his unwelcome visits? And most importantly, do we have the necessary tools on hand to manage this ugly intruder called sin? We must be prepared and ready to fight the enemy, whether it's a nasty cold or a nasty temptation. Check your medicine cabinet NOW, call the "Doctor", and get ready for the fight!