I thought I knew chaos
9:40 AM
Three weeks ago, I got a phone call from my best friend's husband. He told me that his wife, my best friend of 20 years (20 years!) had been in a brutal car accident on the interstate in Jackson on her way home from work. The panic in his voice made me sit on the ground in my office.
I headed to the hospital the next morning with Steph. We learned that the accident caused a major head injury, fractured skull, multiple neck fractures, broken arm bone piercing a major artery, and a fractured knee. Her facial bones would have to be rebuilt, her body was covered in road rash from being launched out
the driver's side door a great distance.
She was still unconscious from post-surgery medication, but somehow she squeezed our hands when we tried to make jokes and tell her how much we love her.
Her survival was a miracle, but we were now terrified of what would happen when she woke up, who she would be, what she would remember, and what kind of function she would have.
Nearly a month later, she is an incredible story. When I saw her for the third time, a week after the accident, she said "wassup?" Just like that. She was her, full of smiles and attitude. She even made a jab at how rough I looked after moving my office around all day. I couldn't have been happier. Since then she has graduated from ICU to physical therapy, learning to use her body all over again. It will be a long road to full recovery and not without bumps.
At the moment I got that first phone call, I was in the midst of what I thought was chaos. And how quickly I was shown that I didn't know chaos. That one of the most important people in my life, in many people's life, could be ripped from us without a warning. Or she could have been a vegetable.
It's been a year of challenge already, and it's only early April. But every time I visit my best friend, or hear a report of her progress, I am so grateful for my family, friends and the work that God gives me, and for that matter for my health. I am grateful for this life that I sometimes think is chaos, when really it's just out of my control. And there's some sort of strange peace in accepting that. And a power in that peace I think too. It's when I try to run the show that I realize how powerless I am. But when I stand back, out of the way of blessings and grace, that's when I'm really shown some amazing things. Like how a girl I love who was nearly dead can stand and talk and poke fun at me.
In light of all this, things that seemed giant are now tiny. My perspective has changed, like the difference between looking at a map of a place and actually standing there and taking it in.
Friday is my best friend's birthday. I have never been more excited to celebrate another year passing. Someone pointed out to me that you can't cheat your appointment with death. But you also can't escape the fulfillment of your purpose. Happy birthday sweet girl! You have so much more purpose left!
I headed to the hospital the next morning with Steph. We learned that the accident caused a major head injury, fractured skull, multiple neck fractures, broken arm bone piercing a major artery, and a fractured knee. Her facial bones would have to be rebuilt, her body was covered in road rash from being launched out
the driver's side door a great distance.
She was still unconscious from post-surgery medication, but somehow she squeezed our hands when we tried to make jokes and tell her how much we love her.
Her survival was a miracle, but we were now terrified of what would happen when she woke up, who she would be, what she would remember, and what kind of function she would have.
Nearly a month later, she is an incredible story. When I saw her for the third time, a week after the accident, she said "wassup?" Just like that. She was her, full of smiles and attitude. She even made a jab at how rough I looked after moving my office around all day. I couldn't have been happier. Since then she has graduated from ICU to physical therapy, learning to use her body all over again. It will be a long road to full recovery and not without bumps.
At the moment I got that first phone call, I was in the midst of what I thought was chaos. And how quickly I was shown that I didn't know chaos. That one of the most important people in my life, in many people's life, could be ripped from us without a warning. Or she could have been a vegetable.
It's been a year of challenge already, and it's only early April. But every time I visit my best friend, or hear a report of her progress, I am so grateful for my family, friends and the work that God gives me, and for that matter for my health. I am grateful for this life that I sometimes think is chaos, when really it's just out of my control. And there's some sort of strange peace in accepting that. And a power in that peace I think too. It's when I try to run the show that I realize how powerless I am. But when I stand back, out of the way of blessings and grace, that's when I'm really shown some amazing things. Like how a girl I love who was nearly dead can stand and talk and poke fun at me.
In light of all this, things that seemed giant are now tiny. My perspective has changed, like the difference between looking at a map of a place and actually standing there and taking it in.
Friday is my best friend's birthday. I have never been more excited to celebrate another year passing. Someone pointed out to me that you can't cheat your appointment with death. But you also can't escape the fulfillment of your purpose. Happy birthday sweet girl! You have so much more purpose left!
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