My daughter arrived in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the middle of the night on the eve of Thanksgiving. A tough respiratory virus attacked her lungs, and she needed a substantial amount of oxygen support. And now, this unexpected illness meant Thanksgiving was going to be completely different than we had all planned.
Are you scrounging for thankfulness this holiday season? Holidays can be a challenge for those walking through hard days. Perhaps you feel like you've been handed the short-end of the stick; your child is struggling, you’re exhausted and it seems like everybody else has life with a bit more gravy. It’s easy to focus on our circumstances, take stock of what we have and where we are and end up feeling completely void of thankfulness. Is there a cure for this?
I first suspected I had ADHD as a teenager, but finding the right professional to take me seriously was much harder than I expected. Previous attempts only ended in frustration and tears.
Enjoying the holidays with a food allergy sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it? After all, eating together is an integral component of the holiday season. I looked forward to making our traditional holiday foods until I was diagnosed with a dairy allergy in 2012. What was to enjoy about the holidays when the foods associated with it were off limits to me?
It was a short, ten-minute drive from the hotel to the residential facility. I maintained composure while I navigated the busy public roads, and then residential streets. I had a whole range of emotions racing through my body, mind and spirit as we pulled into the campus. This was not just a pleasure drive or a routine errand, this was a significant milestone in the life of my son and our family.
My family sits near the back of the sanctuary in the church. I feel safe in the back, where we might blend in and not disturb anyone. I find myself so worried about my daughter and the people around us that I tune out the sermon altogether. Ironically, I am in church fretting over something like this. I have to trust that the people in our congregation will have grace for my family.
Let’s see the nativity play as a gauge of where our church has gotten to on the road to accessibility, acceptance, inclusion and belonging… For a few, there is indeed ‘Good news for ALL people!’, for others, they are 'arriving at Bethlehem' but still have a lot more to do, for many, they 'haven’t even left Nazareth' yet, there is a long journey ahead, and they haven’t even borrowed a donkey.
