Dear family and friends,

This will probably be the last time you will hear from me.  My mom has decided that it is ok to contact her directly through e-mail, facebook or by phone, so many of you are getting your updates from her.  This is the slow part, the time when we all wish she were better, but little has changed.  This is more like a marathon (or Ironman) not a sprint. 

This week my mom went to a few doctors’ appointments.  She might be able to take a step or two in a couple of weeks. If her jaw has healed, she may be able to have a dentist fix her teeth. She will need to have a surgery on her shoulder towards the end of December which will set her back a bit because she will not be able to hold herself up on a walker or move herself from a wheelchair.  I’m sure it is tough to finally see some progress only to find out you are going to be immobile again. 

Through all this, make no mistake, Lu is BACK, maybe not physically, but her independent spirit and her insatiable mind have returned.  She cracks me up.  My daughter and I stopped by to say hello the other night.  We were chatting with her and my dad. She hears the dog trying to bury bones in the leather chairs in the other room.  So instead of asking one of us to get up and put pillows on them, she gets herself into her wheelchair, wheels herself into the room and awkwardly fits the chair in between the furniture so that she can put the pillows on the chairs, all this without any thought in the middle of a conversation. That’s the Lu we all know and love!  I am also glad to have my sounding board back.  She is a great person to discuss whatever may be on my heart or rolling around in my mind. Whatever I’m researching at the time, she will research it with me, not only because she cares but because she loves to learn. 

This week she has reflected on how blessed she is to have such support, from intentions and prayers, to visits and little errands.  She wants you to know she is grateful and that she returns the love and care back to you. She is feeling this web of connectedness which helps her through the difficult news.    I also want to thank you for all the support you’ve given my mom.  It is overwhelming to find out how many people care about her.  Since it is the last time you will hear from me, I will leave you with a poem I wrote shortly after the accident.  One way I deal with stress is to run.  It is my release and prayer time. I often think of poetry while running.  This poem reflects the themes I’ve written about and that my mom has felt in these past few weeks, about letting God hold us in difficult times and remembering that we are all connected. 

Thank you so much, 
Lu's daughter, Meghan

Fisherman

When the tide of pain stretches to shore,

let her know you are there in the billows,

and deep in the current.  Hold her

soul, brine her with Your love.  Keep her

tethered to You, as I was tied to her in the womb.

Knot us all together with Your Empathy.

Cast Your Net, Fisherman.