Today we celebrate FIFTEEN YEARS since our accident!
FIFTEEN YEARS!!! I'm shocked!
That seems like a long time ago, yet it's still fresh.
To announce how thankful I am to be alive is an understatement.
I am overwhelmed.
About a year after the initial accident, I was admitted to the
Arizona Burn Center for follow-up surgeries,
and stayed in the burn center for over a month.
It was another challenging and complicated year.
One Sunday after church, Christian brought the girls to visit me.
They walked into my hospital room,
dressed in big baggy hospital gowns (and a popsicle from my nurse!)
confident and ready to greet me.
A huge contrast from the year before when they were
too scared to even look at their unrecognizable mom
lying lifeless and helpless in the hospital bed.
The year had taught them something about change and growth
and facing fears with confidence.
This morning, Christian and I worked out together.
We were amazed at our progress and how far we've come
in the last 15 years.
After our class, we held each other as tears rolled down our cheeks.
Healing takes time, but it's worth the wait.
Claire, who now works as a burn tech at the same hospital in Arizona
where she and her siblings went to visit her sick parents
dropped off cookies, like we've done every year since the accident
to show our love and gratitude to the burn staff.
I am so grateful she is there doing what I can't.
Later in the evening, Christian, Lottie, Gigs, and I went to dinner
at our favorite black bean burger joint, Freddys.
Nothing fancy.
This is a special day for me because it gave me a second
chance at normal, so I wanted to spend the day
doing everyday ordinary things like;
doing loads of laundry using my hands, watering my hanging plants
by stretching my arms and elbows,
work out and use my heart,
sweep the floor and move my legs and feet, and pick flowers using
my fingers. It feels so good to be alive!
