TGIF
“Michael Newnham 07/08/58”
That’s my name and date of birth and that’s what I had to repeat a thousand times while I was in the hospital.
That’s how they verify that they are giving the right meds to the right people at the right time….or the right food, or the right anything, anytime.
They come in and check your vitals…identify yourself first.
“Michael Newnham 07/08/58”.
Same person comes in ten minutes later with a pain killler…identify yourself first.
“You’re joking”.
“Name and date of birth, please?”
“Same as it was ten minutes ago”.
“and that was…?”
During a given night I would be checked over seven or eight times, get two or three medications from two or three different people and each and every time I would have to repeat the mantra…
“Michael Newnham, 07/08/58.
Sometimes I grumped it, sometimes I gasped it, sometimes I mumbled it, sometimes I spat it, but I always had to say it.
Now…I believe it was a gift.
It wasn’t just a form of identification for them, it was a declaration of personhood to them.
No matter what I needed, no matter how often I needed it, no matter how ungracious or unlovely I was in requesting it…I was a person , not a number, a person, not a space, a person, not a bracelet.
A person….with a name and beginning and no end yet.
Fearfully and wonderfully made by my Father and unveiled to the world on a specific date in history…and I’m still here and He’s still on the throne.
Yes…yes, I am and yes, He is.
I declare it.
I’m Michael Newnham, 07/08/58.
Who are you?
My big stint in the hospital a while back, I was just a bracelet. The arm band had a code on it which was scanned every time someone walked in the room. Which was cool, because I wouldn’t have known my name most of the time:)
My experience really though was much like yours…faith affirming. One life changing moment was walking into an operation waiting area alone at 4am, and my pastor was sitting there waiting, and already praying.
I am loved. By God, and many wonderful people that He has surrounded me with.
If I create one moment for any other human being just once before I leave this world, I’ll consider my life a wild success.
Josh,
I tend to have delayed reactions to a crisis…and I’m just now reacting to mine the last day or two.
It’s safe to be terrified and fall apart now, so I will. 🙂
As brutal as this has been (and still is in some ways) it has been totally faith affirming…and the way faith is affirmed….the only way…is love.
I’m with you…if I can pass on something of which I have received, I will have walked well.
“and the way faith is affirmed….the only way…is love.”
Hmm. That’s profound. That could have far reaching effects if we let this idea guide our actions.
Josh, seeing your pastor already there and praying was huge! That inspired me.
Michael, I’m glad that you are home and resting. One thing that really blesses me is that you know in your heart that you were with God. Sort of a “woman at the well” moment designed just for you. It’s always refreshing to know that someone we love spent time in God’s arms. I’m happy for you.
Your post made me think of this song:
A couple weeks ago my son spent a few days at Children’s Hospital in Denver – he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. His life changed forever, but the nurses and doctors there (many of whom were students) did everything to minister to him. There servants heart stands as an example.
My son showed he was much stronger than I knew. His courage stands as an example. They came into his room every hour of the night and pricked his finger to check his blood sugar, he barely moved – I barely slept. Since that day he has started his new regiment; 4 shots a day, the nighttime one in the bum really hurts. At 10 years old it took him all of five minutes to learn to give himself a shot. At 10 years old he is learning to count carbs. At 10 years old he is learning that he will be different than everyone else for the rest of his life. At 10 years old he is learning to field questions from friends, family, and strangers. The other day he said, “diabetes is hard, but God will use it to teach me something.”
Well, God is using my son to teach me all sorts of things. I gave up my 4 coke a day habit, just so he knew I was with him. He goes to church and brags about how much I am sacrificing for him. I want to cry, because I give up so little for him.
I realize that other families and other kids have to bear more, but I wonder if anyone else can bear it as wonderfully as my son is. At 10 years old he is a more Godly man than I can ever hope to be.
Shaun,
Crying with you…blessings on both of you.
Thank you…
One time I was with my dad in the hospital. The doctor came in and began discussing his conditions and planned treatment. After listening for awhile, I pointed out that my dad had no history of the conditions the doctor was addressing. The doctor went out to check his records, and came back in, confessing he had confused my dad with the patient in the next room.
Having spent way too much time in hospitals, I appreciate the diligence of following procedures to insure medications and treatments are administered to the right patient.
Glad that you are feeling better.
Lungs work better in pairs.
Hmmm…. 😉
Nonnie,
Thanks for the Les Miserables post. I have seen it three times on stage and look forward to the movie this winter. A wonderful presentation about grace!
Michael,
Great post!
Shaun, that’s a tough one … when something is a one time deal it’s hard enough, but when it alters your daily life forever, that’s a whole nother animal.
The good news is that Diabetes info is much better than it used to be. The Children’s Hospital has made great improvements, as well. (Wish I’d known you were there … I was close by, I understand ongoing illness, & I’d have loved to visit you all!) 10 year olds can be so brave sometimes!
Shaun…one of my boy Zach’s buddies on the hockey team has Diabetes. They found out when they were at Disneyland and he passed out. It has been a couple years, and they handle it with amazing patience. He actually just found out that he is getting a Diabetes dog that will go to school with him…he is 11 years old.
He plays on the travel team with Zach and all the kids know. He is good at explaining that he has to watch what he is eating and how much energy he expends. He always has a cell phone on him so he can call his folks if something happens, and just to text his numbers to them.
I’ve seen many posts from his mom in the middle of the night as they work through this.
Praying for you all as you navigate this, and yes…often kids seem to walk in these things with an elegance and maturity that embarrasses the adults. Praying for your boy.
“Who are you?”
Just call me Dust in the Wind
Life is fast and life is hard… on this earth. When you die, your whole life is summed up by the dash (-) on your tombstone. Check it out 1949 – 2012
i seem to remember reading of some very hopeful breakthroughs where diabetes is concerned – will remember to pray harder for its success
hmmm – in the context of this life, we are dust, but we aren’t dust … dust is a very interesting four letter word (not the script, but the product it describes – oh, that was a different thread 🙂 ) think i’ll ponder dust today … shoot, the first thot that comes to mind is that i need to vacuum … well, i can ponder while doing that …
I’m 02/24/51!
Very happy to be alive again this morning! Death and resurrection, every night, every day.
So glad you are as well…. with wit and gifts in tact!
I have been learning about the process of ‘dispatching’ (humanely) chickens, just in case my sick bird doesn’t keep improving :-\ Gruesome topic, but closer to what the OT priests did all day long than so much modern church stuff.
Interestingly, after watching numerous videos yesterday of ‘the process of processing’, I woke up this morning realizing that there is a huge lesson in it all, something repeated over and over in the OT…. and ultimately fulfilled in the life and death of Jesus, our Savior….that it costs a life to give and sustain life….(even if it’s the life of a carrot or chicken, etc)…. Day by day, meal by meal, the lesson of our need of a Dying Savior is played over and over and over….
Make your own application 🙂
Paige – “wits and gifts intact” … that has a nice ring to it 😆
my grandfather taught me how to kill a chicken humanely – his method calls for a good tree stump and an axe – he’d hold the chicken by its feet and lay it gently on its back on the stump, it would go into a very calm, restful state and whack! … well, he thought it was humane – dunno … but he was a strong man of Faith and part of his creed was the responsibility to be good to the animals in his care
Shaun, you are the man.
I wish we could have visited while you were here!