Roller coaster of a day!

When the day began today, we were with hopes of going home soon. That was dashed as we were told that, from their meeting, that we could expect Emily to stay another week. That prompted a call to the surgeon, in which I left a message asking for some help since they're really not doing anything that can't be done at home.

Later in the day, we're unsure as to whether the surgeon spoke to anybody, but we were told that we can actually expect to take her home by Friday or Saturday.

Emily still has pain in her legs, can't stand at all, even to be braced up and is still unable to even know when her bladder needs to be emptied much less go on her own without someone using a catheter. That was my job tonight before bedtime and let me tell you, it ranks high up there as one the last things a father should have to do. I think it's more humiliating than anything, but it must be done.

But before we go feeling sorry for ourselves, I just want to mention that, inevitably, it's easy to come across a situation that someone else is going through that makes our own seem not so bad. Take for example a man and his daughter we met today on the playground. Andrew started playing with the little girl and I came over and we started sharing our stories. His name is Malmut. He and his seven year old daughter Layla are from Istanbul. They've been here in Texas since last November with the wife/mother getting treatment for their little 2 year old daughter that has an incurable cancer. They're doing everything they can to extend her life.

That's just one. We're surrounded by it.

But we're also surrounded by people who come in and volunteer, whether it's preparing meals, coordinating activities or whatever. Usually it's people that have had to go through similar circumstances with their child or relative; like a woman who has been coming her for years since losing her 21 year old son to colon cancer.

It's an amazing side of life that we don't often witness, nor want to. It's an amazing lesson.