Each meal at Mount Hermon, the kids would play outside while we finished our meals (a.k.a. waiting for Eden to finish eating her way through a growth spurt♥.) The older kids in our group would watch the little ones and it was the favorite post meal activity. There was a patio right next to our tables and we could monitor pretty well. On our last night, I hear one of the kids run up to tell their parents that someone was bleeding, ALOT. I walk out to check and my nephew is helping Ryder get to me and Ryder is SCREAMING while he is holding his face/head/eye, and there was SO MUCH blood. It is the first time Ryder has ever had a cut like that. He is screaming at me that it hurts and I can't get him to let me look at it and all I can think is that it's his eye. In less than five seconds, my mind went to "He's blind in that eye" and "He'll need surgery" and "Oh My gosh, if the stick is still poking out, what the @#$! am I going to do..." I told my nephew to get my sister, an ICU nurse, and Kit and to bring me lots of napkins. Kit took one look at my face and went into a very specific calm that he gets when I am freaking out. (Yep, he has that calm mastered...♥) The three of us finally get Ryder to move his hands and we realize it isn't his eye, but he just keeps bleeding. Mind you, Ryder is scared and screaming and I'm trying not to but I have tears rolling down my face, which I know is freaking him out even more. Kit, in his amazingly calm voice, tells me to get our friend Jon, who is an ER doctor. Of course he would think rationally when I am in the process of my freak out. Our friend Jonny comes and calms Ryder down, cleans up all the blood, assesses that he doesn't need stitches, gets it all set with a bandaid and then sits with us while we all try to calm down. Poor Jonny. He made it so we will NEVER want to travel without him ever again!♥ He so sweetly told me that this probably won't be the last time. He is so right. We have a little boy who thinks he is so much older than he is and he loves all things boy like sticks and rocks and dirt and guns and knives... (If he gets a butter knife, or a popsicle stick, or a rock that has the slightest edge, he thinks he's McGuyver or Rambo. My Ryder will sleep with his Laser gun if we would let him...) He is ALL boy.
We took this right after we got him pretty cleaned up and he had a bag of Skittles:
I realized that night that I can worry myself into a full ulcer and sleepless nights, or I can turn to Jesus and entrust my son to His provision and care. I realize really how many things I have NO control over, especially when it comes to my Littles. My prayer is that I learn what it is to CONTINUALLY turn to Jesus and trust Him and His faithful sovereignty. He knew my baby boy before I did. Before Ryder was ever a thought for Kit and I, Jesus knew him and created him with such love. When I think of that, I realize that I can let go more and more and allow the Lord to be in control of the people that I hold most precious. I am so thankful that God used Ryder's gash to remind me of who He is and to help form who I am still becoming as a child of God.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ryder is doing so great. His head is healing so well, and he is bilking it for all the Skittles he possibly can. Yep, he's feeling better. Jonny, thank you so much for loving on us. We are so thankful for you and I am not kidding that we will not want to travel without you and your family ever again♥.
