In the fall, we were even able to take a family vacation with Mama, & Daddy and David and his family. We went to Gulf Shores, AL. Of course, before we could agree to go, I had to check out the area and make sure that there was a hospital in the area that could offer the level of care Ken would require if something unforeseen were to happen. There was one in Foley, which was just up the road from Gulf Shores. So, we packed all of our stuff, which now included “Bill” and all of his paraphernalia, plus I think 3 cases of liquid nutrition, and headed down the road.
I can’t say that it was the most pleasant vacation I’ve ever had. It was nice to get away, don’t get me wrong. The beach was lovely and the weather was beautiful. And it should have been great spending time with my family, but somehow, it just didn’t turn out that way. I won’t go into detail, but let me just say that it was during that week that we discovered much about the TRUE unpleasant nature and disposition of a certain family member. I think by the time the week was up, even my sweet, even-tempered Daddy was ready to cuss. Unfortunately, the behavior of that week was a harbinger of more heartaches to come. We did, by the way, end up at the hospital in Foley that week, but it wasn’t for Ken. David had a kidney stone. What a way to spend a vacation!
Christmas came and went without incident. We welcomed 2004 with more peace and hope than we had 2003. Ken had done so much better than his doctors ever thought he would, it was easy to believe that life could just continue this peacefully for the next 40 years or so.
Come springtime, Ken was asked to portray Jesus in our church’s Easter production. He had been asked to be Jesus before, at our previous church too. When he had his hair and his beard, he sort of had a “Jesus-look” going on. The boys were both in the production too, and I was helping out behind the scenes, so we were all busy. We had to modify the play to exclude the crucifixion scene. With his feeding tube, Ken couldn’t be shirtless (didn’t bother us-we were used to it, but the tube sort of freaked other people out), and I was worried that he didn’t have enough strength left in his torso to be lifted up onto a cross. So, the lights cut out as the soldiers were taking Jesus away. Ken didn’t appear again until he appeared as Jesus resurrected. It was very touching. Even though I was behind the stage and didn’t get to see it directly, I remember what a moving experience it was. When it was over, I sobbed into my hands as Keith told the audience what a miracle it was that the man who portrayed Jesus on that day had been told the year before that he would die within weeks. God had graciously given Ken another year and several months. What better way to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord than with our very own miracle?
Yes, it was truly a miracle. I believed it then and I believe it to this day, with my whole heart. But some of my sobs on that Easter Sunday were coming from another place entirely. Just that week, during the drama rehearsals, I was stunned to see the “hollow-eyed look” creeping back into my sweet husband’s face.
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