So quick update on Papa and the Baer world. As many of you know, Papa's strokes left the doctors identifying a multitude of possible physical disabilities that he might have to deal with. To name a few:
He'd never walk again. He'd never be off of a ventilator. Papa would never be able to speak again. Papa would not have much mental capability. His memory would be shot. Dad wouldn't be able to swallow. He would stop breathing as he slept. Etc. Etc. Etc.
That seems like a whole lot...and it was a lot... here is the deal though. Dad walks. He only has a ventilator at night. Dad totally talks. Dad's mental state is in tact...he can think, problem solve, and complete tasks. He is thoughtful. His memory is most definitely NOT shot. His long term memory is better than most, his short term is improving each day. Dad's sleep apnea has improved dramatically. The only thing we really haven't seen improve is his swallow. This is called dysphagia.
When Dad was still in the hospital he spent a lot of time trying to regain his swallow....but nada. His swallow was one of the first things to go when this all started, and it is one of the last things to come back.
He hasn't received his swallow just yet, but folks, come on....my Dad is a walking, talking, breathing, thinking, loving miracle. Yes, experts say that after 6 months of losing a certain physical capability you'll never get it back....but those same experts also told our family that Dad would be a vegetable and I can promise he is most definitely NOT a vegetable. We believe, TRULY believe that through faith, God can heal Dad's swallow. Many people of our religion have come together in a joint effort of prayer that God might grant to us another miracle. We feel that He wants Dad to receive his swallow...we are confidant that this will happen.
In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we believe that God makes His will known to man in a variety of ways. One of these ways are through priesthood blessings, Priesthood blessings are a way for God's will to be made know to us personally. A special message from Father to child. Dad has gotten many of these since He has been sick, and he has been promised that through his faith and the faith of others that his swallow would be healed.
So, here is the thing. Many of you that read these posts are not of our faith...but you don't have to be to talk to God. God loves all of His children, and He loves when His children talk to Him through prayer. So here is what we are asking: that we unite our faith, and pray to our Heavenly Father for another miracle. I have faith that He will answer our prayers...and I assure you when He does, we will all know without a single doubt that it was by the hand of God.
So I speak Portuguese, a happy benefit of serving a church mission in Portugal for 18 months. There is a verb in Portuguese "Esperar" (eh-spurr-arh) which has three different meanings. The first is "to wait". The second, "to hope". And the third, "to expect". Totally weird, but I have always loved this verb. Aren't those three words synonymous? To wait, expect and hope for something. They are indeed interchangeable! This miracle with Dad's swallow will most definitely not come back in the time frame that WE want....rather it is when GOD wants...when He sees it of most benefit to His children. We must "esperar" in all meanings of that word. We must wait for it. We must hope for it. We must expect it.
We are so humbled by the continued outpouring of love for our family. Not just the "Mike Baer Family", but all of our grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins have too been the recipients of kindness and generosity during this time of hardship. Thank you so very much. We love you and are so grateful for your faithful friendship.
Happy Sunday!
Aubs
