The Last Thanksgiving?

You never really know if it’s the last Thanksgiving. For many years, I’d celebrate Thanksgiving with my family by either cooking a turkey or going to someone else’s home for the big day. The day would be filled with turkey of course, then lots of delicious food, too much to eat on any one day.

This year of course is different. Dear Son has made it through the MRSA pneumonia in May, lived through a relapse in June and celebrated his 8th grade graduation and his birthday last week. I have a lot to be thankful for.

I spent the last week thinking about his days in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Big Academic Medical Center and the hard work of Dr. B, who saved his life the day he was airlifted to Big Academic Medical Center from Local Hospital. I thought about how tirelessly the whole team worked for twelve hours straight to save Dear Son’s life. I thought about how she saved him, and kept him from dying on Mother’s Day and how she brought tulips in for all of the mothers in the PICU, on that day. It was at that moment, that I thought that perhaps there was hope, that my prayers were going to be answered on that day. And they were. Dear Son lived.

He lived to attend his eighth grade graduation just a week after he was dismissed from the hospital, only to suffer a suspected relapse of the MRSA pneumonia a week later.

He made it through the summer, and was able to attend high school in the fall. Imagine that, high school.

He made it through the fall to celebrate his 15th birthday last week.

He made it through yesterday, to get his fancy new tilt wheelchair, so he can sit up better and we can enjoy our walks.

Yes, I have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, even if he can’t eat turkey anymore. I suppose I can just say a prayer right before I pour the PediaSure into the feeding bag. I’ll thank the Lord for another minute, another hour and another day with Dear Son. I’ll kiss his beautiful face and get down on my knees and say thanks. Thanks for another holiday with the one I love. It could have been worse…if he died, I’d be remembering my last Thanksgiving with Dear Son and instead I am enjoying this one, turkey or no turkey. I think that is cause for a celebration.