Last year my heart was wanting to move to the Dallas area to be closer to our daughter and her husband. My husband had retired and I told him of my desire. He was not in agreement, so we both decided to make it a matter of prayer. During Lent we prayed daily for guidance. Still, I was determined God was in this. We had a date to meet with a realtor in September.
During the month of August, I had dental surgery and was on a liquid diet for several days. On the night of the third day, I got up from my chair and fell really hard. My husband was in the kitchen. Since he did not see me fall -- to this day, we do not know how it all happened.
He tried to get me off the floor, but I did not want him to hurt himself. And the pain in my arm was extreme! “I think you should call 911,” I told him. The EMTs were wonderful and off we went to the ER at Methodist West. My husband thought he might get questioned by authorities because my face was all swollen and bruised from the oral surgery and now my arm!
The X-ray revealed that I had broken my arm. When the doctor came to show us the X-ray, my husband looked at it and told me later that he knew it was not good. My humerus bone was broken -- and it was not very humorous!
Surgery was required. I had a wonderful surgeon. After surgery the doctor told me there was more than one break. Because there were two, the surgery was much more invasive.
What puzzled me was why I was feeling so awful after the surgery. I had many friends who recently had surgeries -- shoulder replacement, knee replacement and hip replacement surgeries. They all bounced back so quickly. Was I just a big baby or what? Finally, I asked my surgeon about it. He explained that I had a traumatic fall followed by an invasive surgery to repair the damage -- that is why my recovery was more difficult than the others.
For seven weeks I was pretty much down. My husband stepped up to care for me in ways I never imagined he could. Quite honestly, I was amazed! I have always been a caregiver, but he had never had the opportunity because of working.
I lay in bed thinking of how to make my husband’s life easier. We hired a housekeeper and also someone to tend to our yard. Our small group at church provided meals, Bible study friends called frequently to check in, and so many sweet people were lifting us in prayer during that difficult time. All our needs were being provided by God through His faithful servants.
While I was lying flat on my back in bed, God spoke to me very clearly. I was a captive audience with no distractions. He had my complete attention. I asked Him to teach me what He wanted me to learn from this. I was listening! The realization became very clear about how much my daughter and her husband travel and how busy their lives are. Now is their time to do all the things they desire. There might come a time, hopefully in the distant future, that we would need to live closer. But for now, He showed me how much I was loved by those around us right here where we are.
In this season of our lives, my husband and I are doing great. It is challenging for us to make decisions that will be good for not only us -- but for the rest of our family. All I know is that if I remain faithful to God and allow Him to guide us, all will be okay. We are staying right here until God says it is time to make a move!
And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying,
“This is the way, walk in it.”
Isaiah 30:21
