The Wait

Today has been one of the longest days ever. My dad had back surgery scheduled for 8:30 this morning in Virginia Beach, five hours away from me. As much as I wanted to be there, I just didn't feel comfortable driving that far by myself right now because my body is adjusting to these darned shots I'm having to take and I keep getting these annoying low-grade fevers. I think they're also making me kind of sleepy.

Instead of spending the day with my mom at the hospital, I was forced to wait it out here at home and rely on her to call with information. Well, the surgery ended up taking about five hours. Then he spent a couple of hours in recovery. Meanwhile, my mother's cell phone service didn't seem to be cooperating in the hospital, and she was afraid to leave to call me and my sister. So my sister (who lives in Atlanta but is currently in Seattle at the bedside of her dying friend) is calling me and I'm calling her and we're both calling mom and she's not answering and we're getting more and more frustrated and anxious as the day drags on.

Around 5:15 this evening I called the hospital and eventually managed to get connected to the nurses station outside my dad's room. All the nurse could tell me was that Dad was sound asleep and appeared to be resting comfortably, but no sign of my mom. Finally, Mom calls me about half an hour later to say that she is back at home, exhausted, and that before she left the hospital Dad was sitting up and proudly displaying a jar full of screws the surgeon had removed from his back. They were left from another surgery years earlier, and over time they had worked their way out of place and were combining with his spinal stenosis to cause him excruciating pain. Mom offered to take the jar home, but he insisted that she leave it so he could show it off to any of his poor unsuspecting friends who come to visit. How gross is that...such a guy thing!

So now I find myself seeking the Lord's forgiveness once again for my day of worry. Matthew 6:27 says "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" (or anyone else's for that matter). It's human nature to worry, but God calls us to rely on his divine nature to live beyond our human nature. I didn't do a very good job of that today, I'm afraid. I'm grateful to God though, for bringing my dad through an extensive surgery. If you're reading this, please join me in praying for a full, infection-free recovery for my dad (he contracted a life-threatening staph infection after his heart surgery 8 years ago), for the strength and endurance my mom will need to care for him when he returns home in a few days, and for my mom to be able to stomach the sight of that nasty jar if Dad insists on bringing it home! :)