Not so Good News 

Going to Vanderbilt still feels in part like coming home. You would think that being there would bring all of the negative memories rushing back like running down the hallway to where each child was located to find out how badly each was hurt. Receiving the news that Jackson would never walk again. Holding Alex’s hand as he screamed from the pain of Accute Compartment Syndrome. The sleepless nights, and day after day of countless surgeries. I experienced the most frightening moments of my life inside of those doors. 

And yet, what I remember above all else when I am back at Vanderbilt is the hope I felt as God answered prayer after prayer. Learning that our family was loved by many… more than I could ever have even possibly imagined. The kindness and generosity of strangers. The power of love and the strength of family. The importance of prayers, even those that seem hopeless. The lessons I learned about life. The testing and growing of my faith. The comfort of knowing that we were in the care of more than capable hands. 

So, while Jackson and I were at his 6 month check-up with his spinal surgeon this week, I leaned on that comfort as the doctor explained that Jackson would have to have another spinal fusion in a year and half, possibly sooner. It wasn’t what we wanted to hear. I sometimes forget that our journey isn’t over. There will be more surgeries, more medical scares. Alex and Jackson’s lives will never be what they were before the wreck. But we keep pressing forward, having faith that God will get us through whatever lies ahead. As I told Jackson yesterday as we all huddled in the closet during the storms, Jesus didn’t save you and take you to heaven for nothing. You have a purpose here on earth and no storm is going to change that. 

Love and blessings, 

C.C.