Thanksgiving Day update...

I'm sitting her across the room from my sleeping daughter. She is doing fine today. Had a nice visit from Nanci Hattem (Daniel's mother) and a call from Daniel himself. It calmed her and she has since drifted off into a nice rest.

As i'm sitting here my mind starts to drift to what day it is - Thanksgiving Day. I know it is all about pilgrims giving thanks for a bountiful harvest and expressing gratitude to the Native Indians for teaching them how to grow the food necessary to survive here. It was the sharing of cultures and abilities. It was a time that people brought family and friends, old and new, together and share a special meal. And, it was an expression of hope.

On the surface it may seem like I don't have much to be thankful for. Many of you know the trials and pains that have crossed the path of me and my family. Sometimes it makes a person want to throw up their hands to God and yell "Now what?!"

But, in my heart and in my thought lives hope. It always has...

This year, as I sit across from my sleeping daughter, I have so much more to add to what I am thankful for.

I am most thankful that she is alive. So many times she shouldn't have lived through this...but she has fought hard and is alive. And that means hope is too.

I am thankful nobody else was hurt in the accident. It would poison part of her spirit to know that she hurt someone else.

I am thankful people stopped, and helped, and did what they could to save her. They kept the fire from spreading, they broke windows so she could breathe and they could get to her.

I am thankful that friends love her and her brother as they do. They gathered and supported each other, sent her good strong loving thoughts, held him and cried. The ones who were strong enough to handle what was going on helped support the ones that were not.

I am thankful to the outpouring of help and support for our family, from friends, family, and strangers alike. The hardest thing for me to do personally is ask for, or accept, generosity from others. I like to be the one who is giving and helping. I have had to put that feeling aside. And, in doing so, I have seen just how loving and amazing other people can truly be.

I am thankful for Daniel Hattem, for loving my Sara as only he can. They have an amazing relationship. It is the kind of relationship that adults like me look at and admire for its strength, tenderness, and communication. His love for her is a healing soup - warm and nourishing. I know he misses her deeply and she misses him. When they are together now one can feel the energy between them, enveloping them, and for a few moments they are at ease and this world melts away...

I am thankful to Nanci and Dave Hattem for their love and devotion to their son, for their strong friendship and for their genuine caring for Sara and her welfare. And for so much more I could never begin to express...

I am thankful to Sande Baker, Sara's grandmother, for dropping everything and getting on a plane. She came to be near her granddaughter, but came to care for her grandson. She realized before I even did, that Michael's needs might not be met while I became consummed by Sara's care. She never once faulted me for it. She just jumped in and took care of Michael, Sara's beloved cat Dusty, our dogs, the house, anything that needed to be done. Oh...and she spoiled Michael. I'm not especially thankful for his newfound taste for beef jerky, or real maple syrup, or crunchy peanut butter or orange juice with the pulp in it or white bread sandwiches. But I am thankful that the two of them connected and share stronger bond, even when they gang up against me... :) in jest...of course...

I am thankful for my boyfriend Don Price - for lots of reasons. He took a step back out of my immediate picture so that I could concentrate on Sara and interact with her father regarding her care without distraction. Those first few days were incredibly tough to do without him holding me up - but I could feel him there as if he was. And, when the first 34+ hours were over, and I hadn't slept, I went to his house. He got me fed, showered and into bed. Then he sat up while I slept, with my cell phone in his lap, listening in case the hospital called. It was only because of this that I allowed myself to rest at all.. and he has done that any time I needed ever since...

I am thankful to my Uncle Sim and my Father. They are my only remaining family, my only link to my own history. Time and events have left us somewhat distanced - but one phone call ended that... They have both, in their own ways, given me a nice shot in each arm. Reminded me what kind of stock I come from, and where she gets some of her strength. Hearing each of them send love for Sara, Michael and I has made a world of difference for me.

...to be continued...Sara is awake and we are going to watch Jungle Book. :)~