My Answered Prayer

I left Longview late last night and drove into the wee hours of the morning to get to Oklahoma City last night. Trish and I had some lengthy conversation during those wee hours. Trish began to prepare me for what I would find when I arrived. She told me that I would not find Ashley when I arrived. "She is not there Dave" I want you to be ready because she is not the happy playful baby you are used to. Trish knows my heart for Ashley and I know she was trying to protect me from the hurt. I was heartbroken as she described in detail the lack of interaction Ash is having with the world around her. She described how she screams and cries constantly and cannot be consoled. She described how Ashley's head was cut and bleeding because Ash has been clawing and scratching herself. She told me of the bruises on her head because she thrashes about in the crib and hits her head on the bars. As we discussed the Ashley I would find upon my arrival I felt my heart breaking.

I arrived at my destination and got to see some In laws, a nephew and a niece I have not seen in 7 months or so. I was only there for a couple of hours before catching a plane to Omaha this morning, but I was so thankful to get to spend some time with them. I layed down next to my niece and listened to her talk and tell me everything until I finally drifted off to sleep. I am now well caught up on her school and each and every pet that every family member has. It was so late I did not get to see Tommy, her gray cat, but I did get a wake up call from him around 5:30 this morning. I hopped on my plane and arrived in Dallas early this morning. Once in Dallas I called Trish to check on her and Ash. Our conversation picked up where it had left off last night. Trish again began to try to prepare me for an Ashley that was not the same as the one I left at Christmas time. She described how she will not make eye contact and she is completely unresponsive. She told me that Ash won't hold toys and has no interest or interaction with anything or anyone. She described the seizure like condition I would find Ash in and told me of how Ash was beginning to have strange seizures in her right eye. Trish told me of how she could not lay Ashley down without her screaming and crying in discomfort. Trish told me of how bad her back and feet hurt from standing and walking the room trying to console Ash for the last 13 days.

Keep reading because this is where my story starts to get good.

I had a long layover in Dallas so I found a spot to lay on the floor while I waited on my plane. I closed my eyes and said a simple little prayer. I asked God to please allow me to see my Gherkin a tiny bit before the weekend was over. That was it nothing fancy, not long and eloquent just a simple plea that I might see some sign of my Gherkin before I had to return home. I then began to sing in my head (it sounds much better in there) Father, I Adore You.

I arrived in Omaha safely and when I entered the room I found Trish standing up rocking Ash trying to console her just as she has almost constantly for the last 13 days. Ash was whimpering and crying and acting just as Trish had prepared me for. Trish was talking with a visitor so I quietly slipped in and took Ash from her arms so she could have an easier conversation with her guest. I sat down in the chair with my Gherkin and began to play my silly games with her. As described Ashley was not there. She thrashed her head about and would not look at me. She would not interact with me or the toys I had for her. Her arms shook and trembled as they randomly moved about. I continued to show her toys and play in spite of this and an amazing thing happened. After about 5 min I reached under my shirt and pulled out my necklace. Ash always loved to pull on it and try to rip it off my neck. She saw it and with a trembling unsteady hand she reached for it. I got Trish's attention and she looked over and could not believe she was watching Ash reach for something. I took my necklace off and held it in front of her and this time she reached out with both hands. This time her hands were a bit more steady. Over the next 5 min the tremors in her body were gone and she was intently playing with whichever toy I gave her. Trish was amazed. Then it happened, the biggest grin splattered her face. It was brief , but was there. And then another grin and she began to laugh out loud. Over the next 15 min we sat and played with a lot of toys and she laughed for me another 3 separate times. At one point we looked up and there were 4 nurses standing at Ashley's door wondering what was going on. They gathered because nobody was hearing Ashley scream.

She has been quietly laying in her crib for 20 min now while I typed this Blog.

Thank you God for answering my prayer above and beyond what I ever expected.

I am going to go now, I have a Gherkin to play with.

DAVE