Saturday, January 08, 2005
LITTLE JOHN IS BORN....1985
The days following our visit to Rock Island were filled with yard work here and up at mom’s place. April was popping out all over and we were trying to keep up with getting the flower beds cleaned out and planting some new shrubs. I no longer worked at Fas-Serv as Becky had some good help now and I needed more time at home. Mom’s health was getting to the place where we were needed more and more to care for her lawn and heavy inside work. Washing windows and all that were too hard for her to manage anymore.
On one such day of chores, on the 19th, John called about 8:00pm to tell us their baby boy was born at 5:45pm that afternoon. I could hear the joy and excitement in his voice. He had been with Barb throughout the ordeal and I had to give them credit for taking the classes to have a natural child birth….in the days when I had my three children I would have shot any doctor unwilling to give me anesthetics. I believe Barbara’s words were (much later)…. “I’m never doing THAT again! Next time I’m taking all the stuff they can give me.” One of her funny stories was that while she was getting down to the nitty-gritty heavy pain stuff, John was watching Bugs Bunny (or something on that order) on the TV in her room…..and she’s like…”John, John, ….help me breathe!!!!” Of course I probably have incorrectly stated this but their story is accurate and very funny …..maybe you get the drift.
But I digress. Back to the announcement. They named him John Bryant Strain after daddy John and mama’s maiden name of Bryant. Pretty clever, I thought. He weighed 7 lbs. 7 ozs. and was 20 ½ inches long. John said he had blonde curly hair and long fingernails. John had been in the delivery room during the whole affair and got to hold him after the dramatic entrance into their world. Of course we sighed a sigh of relief that the birth was over, Barbara was OK and the baby was fine. John’s capacity for pride was overflowing and we were happy for all of them.
Two days later was Sunday and John’s birth was announced in church with everyone voicing their congratulations. Unknown to us the day in Rock Island was going very different from our happy announcements, locally. Little John began running a temperature early in the morning and the watchful nurse began to take notice. She alerted the doctor and insisted he come to check little John out. It was discovered a type of meningitis-streptococcus B (infection of the brain lining) was present and they were fighting to keep it in control…..the hospital at Rock Island wasn’t able to handle the care he would need and a medic-helicopter was obtained to take him to Peoria to a larger hospital. There he would be given white blood cells to fight the infection. The fear was that if not caught in time he could have brain damage.
Barbara’s parents and sister had arrived from Vicksburg, MS. and were there to drive John and I believe, Barbara, to Peoria to be close to little John. It was a blessing they were there to do so and they all stayed until the baby had passed the crisis and was able to come home. John later wrote of his feelings as they watched the helicopter lift off the pad and fly out of sight with their newborn son. It is in one of his former blog entries.
There is no pain like a parent having to watch a child endure a crisis they have no power over. I know, for I am a parent. It would be much more bearable if we could endure their pain for them. God would have it otherwise….we are each to bear our own pain for there is a truth to be gained in suffering. And so…..John and Barb were the first ripple of the pebble in the pond and the rest of the family and friends became the connecting ever widening circles………
Until tomorrow,
Essentially Esther
On one such day of chores, on the 19th, John called about 8:00pm to tell us their baby boy was born at 5:45pm that afternoon. I could hear the joy and excitement in his voice. He had been with Barb throughout the ordeal and I had to give them credit for taking the classes to have a natural child birth….in the days when I had my three children I would have shot any doctor unwilling to give me anesthetics. I believe Barbara’s words were (much later)…. “I’m never doing THAT again! Next time I’m taking all the stuff they can give me.” One of her funny stories was that while she was getting down to the nitty-gritty heavy pain stuff, John was watching Bugs Bunny (or something on that order) on the TV in her room…..and she’s like…”John, John, ….help me breathe!!!!” Of course I probably have incorrectly stated this but their story is accurate and very funny …..maybe you get the drift.
But I digress. Back to the announcement. They named him John Bryant Strain after daddy John and mama’s maiden name of Bryant. Pretty clever, I thought. He weighed 7 lbs. 7 ozs. and was 20 ½ inches long. John said he had blonde curly hair and long fingernails. John had been in the delivery room during the whole affair and got to hold him after the dramatic entrance into their world. Of course we sighed a sigh of relief that the birth was over, Barbara was OK and the baby was fine. John’s capacity for pride was overflowing and we were happy for all of them.
Two days later was Sunday and John’s birth was announced in church with everyone voicing their congratulations. Unknown to us the day in Rock Island was going very different from our happy announcements, locally. Little John began running a temperature early in the morning and the watchful nurse began to take notice. She alerted the doctor and insisted he come to check little John out. It was discovered a type of meningitis-streptococcus B (infection of the brain lining) was present and they were fighting to keep it in control…..the hospital at Rock Island wasn’t able to handle the care he would need and a medic-helicopter was obtained to take him to Peoria to a larger hospital. There he would be given white blood cells to fight the infection. The fear was that if not caught in time he could have brain damage.
Barbara’s parents and sister had arrived from Vicksburg, MS. and were there to drive John and I believe, Barbara, to Peoria to be close to little John. It was a blessing they were there to do so and they all stayed until the baby had passed the crisis and was able to come home. John later wrote of his feelings as they watched the helicopter lift off the pad and fly out of sight with their newborn son. It is in one of his former blog entries.
There is no pain like a parent having to watch a child endure a crisis they have no power over. I know, for I am a parent. It would be much more bearable if we could endure their pain for them. God would have it otherwise….we are each to bear our own pain for there is a truth to be gained in suffering. And so…..John and Barb were the first ripple of the pebble in the pond and the rest of the family and friends became the connecting ever widening circles………
Until tomorrow,
Essentially Esther
