I'm Not Racist....I Have CANCER!!!

 I promised you all our adventure story, so here it is! On Monday the 12th, after an extremely exhausting day of appointments, I looked over at Anna and said, "I don't feel like making dinner!" Anna responded with, "yeah, let's go get dinner somewhere!" I'm still not super familiar with places around here and had a bit of a time trying to think of someplace to go. Then, for some reason, I thought of the mall! Huh?! You all may think that sounds a bit weird...and I'd be the first to agree! Anna agreed to it so we loaded Selah up and headed out. As we approached the doors, a lovely black lady and her three adorable children came up to us and asked if we knew the area well. It seems she was in need of help and the people from a women's shelter hadn't bothered to show up and show her where to go, and no one else would stop to talk to her. I offered them all food to which they reluctantly accepted. Anna and I both agreed that this was why the mall was what popped into my head for dinner....if only to be a blessing to this woman and her precious children. Well, as we got them settled, complete with phone numbers of our church and one down the road from our church, we headed over to get our own food...........
With food in hand, we scanned the eating area. There were many tables with nobody sitting at them so we chose the middle table that was away from people. (Please remember that Anna still has almost no immune system) We began eating and enjoying a bit of chatter. The lady and her children waved good-bye to us as they left...we waved back with big smiles in hopes that we had at least helped a little. I truly wish I knew the area better as I could have at least given her a name and number of a local church that could potentially help. Well, as we continued with our meal, a man and lady approached a table directly behind Anna.....with a cat carrying case that had straw hanging out of it. The man, who held the case started to sit in the chair closest to Anna. I got up and walked around the table and asked him, "Excuse me sir, but is there an animal in that case?" He replied, "Yes!" So I continued with the explanation that my daughter (pointing at her) is a bone marrow transplant patient who has a very low immune system and can NOT be around animals, so would he be so kind as to move to another table? His response?!!!! "Are you sure it's not my race???" I admit I was shocked at his hostility! I don't even know what his race is! I then quickly assured him that it was most definitely NOT why I was asking him to move, I even told him that my daughter had a wig on that she could remove to prove it! (way to think on your toes, Emily! LOL!) Anna stood and took off her wig.....the man refused to look at her, but the woman saw. They did move several tables away and then we heard him in a loud and angry voice say, "That's okay, we HATE white people, too!" He then turned to the lady and said (again in a loud & angry voice), "That's how you talk to those kind of people!" Yikes! Anna and I immediately felt sick in the pit of our stomachs! Unable to finish eating, I prayed silently for God's protection over us. "Anna," I said, "I'm ready to go home!" I know this kind of thing can happen anywhere, but I think it may be a bit less scary when you are in a familiar environment! So, this was our adventure on Monday, August 12!

The pictures of Anna are from this past Tuesday, Hickman removal day! What an exciting day it was! With a check in time of 6:15 a.m., we were a bit sleepy eyed as we entered the hospital. The registration and work up to prepare her for the procedure was long.......the actual procedure itself lasted a whole FIVE minutes! I was a bit amazed at how quick it was! Any number of things could have made it longer, but it all came out smoothly! Anna was ready to go in just a short amount of time and now, she is Hickman free!!!! Not having the line means one less opportunity for infection and one more step toward getting home! Our last appointment is this coming Monday, the 26th.......day +100!!!!! Wednesday she has a podiatrist appointment to check on her toes, and then we will be all set to head back to Bremerton! The house is very close to being ready. Craig, the boys, Naomi, and many very generous people have worked very hard at getting everything prepped and painted. Everything will be fresh for Anna's arrival! We are anxious to be a whole family again!!!

Tonight, we had another adventure! We (Naomi, Anna, Sarah S., and I) headed over to drop off a library book then to stop at Safeway for a few things. As we got to the library, Naomi jumped out to put the book in the drop box. She headed back to the car with a strange look on her face. "Mom, did you know we have a very flat tire?" She asked. Ugh! I did not! I quickly thought of a family nearby to which I could call......no answer, bummer! Then I called Craig, deep in oil base floor paint. He suggested sending one of our boys over to our neighbor's to see if they were home and willing to help us out! PRAISE THE LORD for Steve Gosset!!!!! He was our knight in shining armor! He changed our tire to the spare and we were on our way. I know, shameful that I didn't know how to do this, but then again, it would have been a bit awkward with a big ol' pregnant belly in the way! We picked up some apples so as to bake a fresh apple pie as a thank you to Steve and Judy for their time.....they have been awesome neighbors, very welcoming, and we will miss them very much!



!!URGENT!!
Please pray for Allistaire Anderson! She is a sweet little girl whose Mom we met while at Children's. She is three years old and has Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. She recently went through treatment and we were hoping for good news. Sad to say she has relapsed! My momma's heart is grieving and yet the prayers are more fervent than ever! You will find their blog and journey to the side in my list of blogs I follow, conglomerationofjoy.com.....please read it, but most of all, please pray for this family!!

Thank you all!

7 comments:

  1. Don't you love how God pricks your heart to just seemingly randomly do something and you see why later? That's great that you were able to be a blessing to them! Wow...It sounds like he was almost looking for a reason to accuse you guys! It is odd to just randomly sit right next to someone when there is plenty of seating in the first place. I pray that he is able to let go of his bitterness and discontinue stereotyping others. Thanks for the update on Allistaire! I'll be praying for her, and we'll pray for her in devos tonight. Love you guys and can't wait to have you back in Bremerton! We're still praying and hope to see most/all of you tomorrow!

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  2. Praise the Lord for the Hickman line removal! I will definitely pray for Allistaire; thanks for the info on that. "Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare." Psalm 75:1. Love you guys.

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  3. I can't believe day 100 is here!!! Every time I look at Anna, I'm overwhelmed by the goodness of God! It is truly a miracle. Praise the Lord!!!!

    ~Sarah S.

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  4. Thank you for sharing your adventures!

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  5. changing a tire is so hard! i have had to a few times, and i am glad you had a guy to do it, cuz getting those bolts off are seriously sooo hard! it really does take a guy! day 100! already! go anna! and GO houstons! sticken together! im waiting for that movie anna! ;)

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  6. It's so good to see the progression of praises & answered prayers that have occured during this illness. God is good all the time. God's hand of protection has been w/you, in ways you may never know. You may have had the flat tire, that then prevented you from being where an accident was going to occur. These things we just have to trust God in. You were able to be a blessing to the mother & children, that may have been at a turning point in their lives that they will remember your kindness as a life changing event. Unfortunately, some people are just nasty and behave that way to others, God will only judge us by how we respond, and you responded w/kindness & were polite. May God continue to heal & protect you, and we will continue to pray. Carole Binder & crew

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  7. Thanks for the updates on both Anna and Allistaire... continued prayers for them and also Moriah. Praise the Lord for answered prayers, Hickman line removal, and for God's protection and provision. Praying your paint dries quickly so you can all be in your home soon. Wishing there was something I could do to help. I could sit with and mind the littler ones if you need someone to do that while you need the "path clear" for moving things back in the house. Just let me know. Hugs, Grace

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