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I will never forget the day. It was a Friday.
S. was 5 years old. He is my third son out of 4 and I was absolutely insane enough in my younger days to try and home school 4 boys. 4 very strong willed and active boys. Insanity and all, I did it. As you can imagine, taking them on outings to a park was the norm, not the exception. But this park day was epic. Etched on my mind in steel.
As I drove that morning to the park in my blue, non~air conditioned mini van, the strangest sensation of peace overwhelmed me. It was tangible and it came from seeming no where. I looked up and the sky was vivid blue with crisp white clouds. I knew this had to be God as I'd never felt anything like this before nor have I since. I wondered to myself, "am I about to die and go to heaven"? "Is this what it feels like just before you go"? I arrived at the park, unloaded the gang of little wiggly males, and the sensation left.
It was a normal outing. Complete with boys climbing on everything in sight except the actual intended park apparatus. I remember it in detail, though. I even remember taking S. to the boys bathroom. Then we headed home.
The peaceful sensation returned as I drove. I was comforted, yet perplexed.
Normal, normal. Everything appeared normal, yet I was keenly aware of everything. I gave the two youngest boys a bath before nap time and suddenly S. begins to scream as I wash his hair. His scalp was hurting and I had no idea why. I put the two youngest down for a nap afterward, the older have what I used to deem as "rest times". For some reason I want S. near me, so I lay him in my bed and settle down next to him. I stay awake as S. stirs unusually in his sleep. Something's not right and I know it.
Upon waking and beginning dinner time prep, the events of the day fade with the busyness. I mention to my husband casually near the end of the day about the strange episode then we go to bed. We go to bed only to be awakened in the middle of the same night by cries from S. We run to him and he's crying because his legs hurt now, he tells us he can't walk. We give him Tylenol, pray and he settles back down.
The next day is Saturday and my husband and I intuitively know something is still very wrong. S. has a few little purple, reddish spots on his legs. Nothing significant, but we know. My husband calls the doctor and they want to see him and oh so very providentially, they were open for a few hours on Saturdays back then. I stay home with the 3 boys and my husband takes S. in. Upon examination they want to hospitalize immediately.
S is admitted, they run tests and conclude he has H.S.Purpura. An extremely rare autoimmune disorder where the body attacks itself, it goes into a sort of "healing" mode...only it's in high gear. Every part of his little body thought it needed to heal itself...so he would swell, bruise and his joints would hurt terribly for the coming weeks. I spent the night with him in the hospital, only to watch his nose, eyes and head swell so that he was barely recognizable. They released him the next day and I phoned my husband to be prepared...to prepare his brothers...because S. looked very bad.
We were released with the instructions to continue bringing him to the doctor for urinalysis daily as this disease is life threatening and can attack the kidneys and heart. So for the next several weeks we watched helplessly as his little body bruised and ached all over. His older brothers devised a make shift transport system to move him from one area of the house to another with a Little Tykes wagon and a blanket along the bottom for comfort...
to be continued...
S. was 5 years old. He is my third son out of 4 and I was absolutely insane enough in my younger days to try and home school 4 boys. 4 very strong willed and active boys. Insanity and all, I did it. As you can imagine, taking them on outings to a park was the norm, not the exception. But this park day was epic. Etched on my mind in steel.
As I drove that morning to the park in my blue, non~air conditioned mini van, the strangest sensation of peace overwhelmed me. It was tangible and it came from seeming no where. I looked up and the sky was vivid blue with crisp white clouds. I knew this had to be God as I'd never felt anything like this before nor have I since. I wondered to myself, "am I about to die and go to heaven"? "Is this what it feels like just before you go"? I arrived at the park, unloaded the gang of little wiggly males, and the sensation left.
It was a normal outing. Complete with boys climbing on everything in sight except the actual intended park apparatus. I remember it in detail, though. I even remember taking S. to the boys bathroom. Then we headed home.
The peaceful sensation returned as I drove. I was comforted, yet perplexed.
Normal, normal. Everything appeared normal, yet I was keenly aware of everything. I gave the two youngest boys a bath before nap time and suddenly S. begins to scream as I wash his hair. His scalp was hurting and I had no idea why. I put the two youngest down for a nap afterward, the older have what I used to deem as "rest times". For some reason I want S. near me, so I lay him in my bed and settle down next to him. I stay awake as S. stirs unusually in his sleep. Something's not right and I know it.
Upon waking and beginning dinner time prep, the events of the day fade with the busyness. I mention to my husband casually near the end of the day about the strange episode then we go to bed. We go to bed only to be awakened in the middle of the same night by cries from S. We run to him and he's crying because his legs hurt now, he tells us he can't walk. We give him Tylenol, pray and he settles back down.
The next day is Saturday and my husband and I intuitively know something is still very wrong. S. has a few little purple, reddish spots on his legs. Nothing significant, but we know. My husband calls the doctor and they want to see him and oh so very providentially, they were open for a few hours on Saturdays back then. I stay home with the 3 boys and my husband takes S. in. Upon examination they want to hospitalize immediately.
S is admitted, they run tests and conclude he has H.S.Purpura. An extremely rare autoimmune disorder where the body attacks itself, it goes into a sort of "healing" mode...only it's in high gear. Every part of his little body thought it needed to heal itself...so he would swell, bruise and his joints would hurt terribly for the coming weeks. I spent the night with him in the hospital, only to watch his nose, eyes and head swell so that he was barely recognizable. They released him the next day and I phoned my husband to be prepared...to prepare his brothers...because S. looked very bad.
We were released with the instructions to continue bringing him to the doctor for urinalysis daily as this disease is life threatening and can attack the kidneys and heart. So for the next several weeks we watched helplessly as his little body bruised and ached all over. His older brothers devised a make shift transport system to move him from one area of the house to another with a Little Tykes wagon and a blanket along the bottom for comfort...
to be continued...
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