The Gift My Father Gave Me
Let me indulge for a bit and tell y'all a little story. I promise it will tie in with Lana. =)
My Dad was an avid Tennis fan for as long as I could remember. I wasn't as keen about tennis, but the one sport we both enjoyed in common was basketball. My Dad was the one who showed me how to shoot a basketball. I remember him lecturing about how important it was to put a backspin on the ball it as it left your fingertips. I became a decent shooter and became rather adept at shooting free throws as well. So much so that when I played organized school basketball, I was usually the one assigned to shoot when there were technical fouls. I remember once shooting free throws in a tied game with no time left on the clock after getting fouled on a fast break. It was a tense moment to say the least, and all I had to do was make one shot and we win. My Dad was in the bleachers and I could see him standing up as I let the first shot go. The ball hit the back of the rim and then rattled out... I missed. At this point I saw my Dad walking out of the gym and I didn’t know how to feel. Was he disappointed in me? I composed myself for the second shot, and thankfully that one went in and we walked away with a win. Although I was relieved that we won, I was confused why my dad seemed disappointed. I talked to my mom later that night, and she said that my dad wanted to start the car early to beat the traffic. He knew that when we win games at our homecourt, the traffic is worse because everyone wanted to hangout at the school even longer. After a loss, most people felt less inclined to hang around and traffic isn't as bad. My Dad was confident in my abilities and he knew I would sink at least one of those shots. My father believed in me. That was the greatest gift he gave me. This is also the same gift I give to both of my daughters. I BELIEVE in both of them with all my heart.
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Lana has been officially off the ventilator for exactly one week. We pray and hope that she can keep it that way. She is now on a bubble CPAP which provides her with oxygen and pressure to her lungs, but it is less invasive than a ventilator. This is great progress for her because it's a marker that her pulmonary functions are slowly but surely improving.
Yesterday they attempted to introduce her to bottle feeding. It didn't go as well as we had hoped, but we're confident she'll pick it up in the near future. She can suckle just fine, but she has trouble swallowing down the milk. They figure that her throat might still be tender from being intubated for so long. They will allow her more time to rest, and then re-challenge her again at a later date.
At this time we would also like to say thanks to everyone who has been supportive of our family during this time of hardship. We are here at the hospital so much that we are hardly ever home to cook. We were content with eating fast food, but we didn't know how much we missed real food until our friends were kind enough to drop off food. In all honesty this made a world of a difference for us because not only did you guys fill our bellies, you also filled our hearts. To Frank, April, Ly, Sam, Steven, and Kristy, we thank you so much for your kindness. We will be forever grateful for your friendship.
Lana's evening RN, Michelle made this footprint card for her.
We didn't realize how lucky our family is to be surrounded with so many wonderful people. We would like to recognize your enduring support. From wearing her bands, or sending us encouraging letters, or even just to check in on us, these gestures have not gone unnoticed. Also, thank you for continuing to pray for Lana. Our Lord has kept watch over our family. Even in our darkest moments, we have never felt alone. He has empowered us with His strength when we were at our weakest. With Christmas around the corner, we have been blessed with the greatest gift - love.