Faith: Dad Update 2/12/2014

4 months. Looking back, it's amazing how much my life has changed in the last 4 months. I've moved back to Brenham, started a new job, and struggled each and every day with Dad's diagnosis. For some people, it takes years for them to change, years for them to figure out the true meaning of life, and years for them to realize that every day is a gift. But for me, for me it only took 4 short months- actually, for me it only took about 4 short minutes of seeing my Dad on a stretcher, EMS by his side, and blood on the floor. Those 4 minutes changed my life, changed the person I am today, and helped me realize that life is way too short. 

The last 4 months have been filled with struggles. I would be lying if I told you that every day was perfect for me or my family. Each day is a struggle. We each have this unbelievable faith, faith that there is a reason much greater than we can even begin to understand why our family is going through this fight. But each day our faith is tested by our fear of the unknown, our fear of the future. But faith tells me that no matter what lies ahead of me, God is already there. It's so comforting to know that no matter what happens in my life, no matter what path I'm forced down, or what struggles are ahead- I have amazing family, friends, and FAITH to help me get through it all. 

I think "Faith" is MY new word. Faith. It's something I've struggled with my entire life, and something I continue to struggle with daily. I think every Christian would agree that having faith in this higher power much greater than any power here on Earth can be difficult, especially in difficult situations. But man, how wonderful is faith in times of need- in times when you feel the most alone, to know you are never truly alone. 

How many people can say their lives have changed so drastically in 4 months, much less 4 minutes? Is this struggle and difficult time something I wanted or something I planned in my life? Absolutely not. But how wonderful that God picked MY family to go through this struggle- MY family to grow closer to one another and to him. We are blessed.

Dad is finally feeling better after his last round of chemo, and I truly love coming home to him and hearing about his day. His next round of chemo is coming up more quickly than I would like, although I continue to pray the chemo is working to suppress any cancer growth, and I pray this next round is kinder to his body. I have been working with the speech therapist to have Dad working more with the iPad for his speech therapy, and he seems to really enjoy it! His speech is getting there- slowly but surely! 

Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny. Dad's diagnosis and fight has already given me an extraordinary destiny. From the outside looking in, the outcome may not look 'extraordinary', but from the inside looking out I'm so thankful of the person I've already become because of his fight. I've come to realize that none of us can do anything about the length of our lives, but we can do something about it's width and depth.