How I spent January 2012

Dear Blog,
I spent January 3rd-7th at Duke Raleigh Hospital having a lung lobectomy.
January 7th-17th I began recuperating from surgery.
January 18th Cameron & I ended up at Cary Wake with Keith who had suffered a heart attack!
January 18th-21st the family & I stayed at Big Wake Hospital waiting for quadruple bypass surgery for Keith, then waiting as he recovered.
January 21st he came home:)
Today, February 11th, marks 3 weeks past heart surgery:)
Whew!
It was a tough time & recovery is a slow process:(
These are photos I took during Keith's time at Cary Wake & Big Wake.









We have been well loved by countless friends & family:)
Praise God, He is the Great Physician & Healer:)

A Big Tractor Week

Years ago, Keith's nephew Nick would help Grandpa mow the yard & at the end of the day, he'd sigh & say, "Grandpa, it's been a big tractor day!!".

Well, this past week+ has been a "big tractor week" with my lung biopsy/surgery. First time for major surgery, other than a C-section with Skye 24 years ago.

Tuesday:
Pre-op day at Duke Raleigh. Keith & Skye spent hours sitting with me while I answered questions of every sort & was being informed of what to expect the following day.
Such a bitter cold day in the midst of a mild winter.
Afterward a nice gentleman drove us from the main hosptial to Dr. Chang's office in a golf cart--I kidded him about using his air conditioner--burrrr!
We all came home & took a nap!

Wednesday:
Keith & I headed back to Old Wake Forest Road, arriving about 10am, where we proceeded to the Same Day Surgery Waiting Room. I was fasting, so no coffee for me--& I was craving a steaming hot latte.
After about 20 minutes, we were called back to the pre-surgery cubicle. The nurse began the IV's while I signed papers, answered more questions, etc.
Skye joined us before I was wheeled away to surgery.
I remember being parked on the gurney in a hallway, evidently near the OR.

After surgery:
When I woke up Dr. Chang was standing over me telling me all had gone well. He looked alien-like in his green surgery scrubs. My next memory, I was in ICU, a tiny room with large machinery. Bruce, an ICU nurse, was so attentive to me all evening & through the night:) Encountered quite a few male nurses during my stay, which was so different from 24 years ago!:)
Family came in at various times...
Keith spent the night in the ICU Waiting Room, attempting to sleep.

Thursday:
After a night in the hectic ICU--I myself setting off beepers & monitor bells & whistles, plus all the whirrs & buzzes that occur simply from spitting out readings every 5 minutes--it was time for breakfast. My nurse insisted I needed "real" food, so sent back the liquid diet that had been delivered. Can I tell you how delicious pancakes & sausage can be after fasting for 24 hours & going through surgery? Yum.
Keith & Skye arrived:)

Rev. Andy stopped in to check on me before taking Mrs. Rev. to NYC for a "wild" weekend:) Loved chatting about NYC since it's a favorite place of mine:)

By 11am a private room had been found, so I was unhooked from "various & sundry" & taken from the 1st floor to the 5th. As soon as I got settled in, it was down to the basement(?) for a chest x-ray; at least I graduated from a portable bed to a wheelchair for the basement trip:)
After the x-ray, back to the room, a quiet, calm room. Still tethered by a few things, but much freer than ICU. Nap time, sleep time:)
Seth, Kelley, & Cameron came at some point:)
In the evening Lou & Lorraine & Ralph dropped in--felt pretty good, loved good company:)
Keith asked Skye to stay Friday night.
I still needed help getting to the bathroom by myself.

Friday:
Woke up feeling funky. Spent the day dealing with nausea & grogginess. Ugh.
Diet all day? Diet Pepsi & crackers.
Sent out an email asking anyone that wanted to visit to call ahead. Only Seth came, in the afternoon. He sat with his iPad while Keith & I slept. (Skye & Cameron came later for a while) Nurse Sue was so kind--tried every way possible to help me.
The evening nurse turned off the lights & didn't check on us for hours--we needed the peace & quiet, & uninterrupted sleep.

Saturday:
Breakfast was coffee, pancakes & sausage, but this time I only wanted the pancakes. The nurse took away my last two "teethers". Dr. White came by about 9am, Dr. Chang's partner, to discharge me.
Let me say, I was so impressed that Dr. Chang & his PA Katie came by twice every day--amazing!

By 10:30 Keith & I were packed & heading out the door of Duke Raleigh, into the sunshine:)My tummy was better, time to rest & heal.
BTW, did you know that your right lung has 3 lobes & your left lobe has two? Never knew that till this week!


News from Dr. Chang's PA this week: All lymph nodes were clean, & the tumor was a carcinoid cancer.(See http://www.cancer.org/cancer/lungcarcinoidtumor/detailedguide/index)

Bless the Lord, oh my soul, & all that is within me, bless His Holy Name.

A New Year

"We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives...not looking for flaws, but for potential."
- Ellen Goodman

Today is January 1st, 2012.
A new year:)
A year filled with hope I will open my eyes & see my daily blessings, that I will be enfolded with courage to face trials that inevitably come.
We are not promised happiness, but we are promised joy if we rest in God's lavish love, sustaining grace, & comfort:)

God bless & keep each of you as we all seek our God-given mission in this precious journey.

Music

Music

When I was a child
I once sat sobbing on the floor
Beside my mother's piano
As she played and sang
For there was in her singing
A shy yet solemn glory
My smallness could not hold

And when I was asked
Why I was crying
I had no words for it
I only shook my head
And went on crying

Why is it that music
At its most beautiful
Opens a wound in us
An ache a desolation
Deep as a homesickness
For some far-off
And half-forgotten country

I've never understood
Why this is so

But there's an ancient legend
From the other side of the world
That gives away the secret
Of this mysterious sorrow

For centuries on centuries
We have been wandering
But we were made for Paradise
As deer for the forest

And when music comes to us
With its heavenly beauty
It brings us desolation
For when we hear it
We half remember
That lost native country

We dimly remember the fields
Their fragrant windswept clover
The birdsongs in the orchards
The wild white violets in the moss
By the transparent streams

And shining at the heart of it
Is the longed-for beauty
Of the One who waits for us
Who will always wait for us
In those radiant meadows

Yet also came to live with us
And wanders where we wander.
Anne Porter (1911 -2011)

Christmas Time Whisperspace

Christmastime in Apex

This is a beautifully decorated storefront in downtown Apex.

I love the creative "winter wonderland" entrance to this unique gift shop. It's a new business & I pray it will be able to weather the economic times we're in.

Another favorite shop in downtown had to close this year, Out Of The Kiln. Makes me sad:( They crafted many of the pottery items they sold.

Small businesses are a risk in this financial climate, but they can offer some unusual & artsy gifts, often handmade, that aren't found in every store throughout every plaza or mall.

I work in a gift shop/card shop, & far too often I see products we sell in every gift shop around, plus shops in other states as well! (I'm afraid far, far too many items are made in China) We do sell some local items & are proud to do so:)

America, we need to use our pocketbooks & vote for unique, quality made craftsmanship!

Etsy online is one place that offers handmade one of a kind gifts. Consider checking them out. And I'm sure there are more sites. But first of all, buy at local small businesses that are not inundated with mass produced products, & their personal service will be an added blessing:)

Merry Christmas, friends:)

May you be blessed by a beautifully made present this year that will bring you much joy:)

Tis The Season

"The universal joy of Christmas is certainly wonderful.

We ring the bells when princes are born, or toll a mournful dirge when great men pass away.

Nations have their red-letter days, their carnivals and festivals, but once in the year and only once, the whole world stands still to celebrate the advent of a life. Only Jesus of Nazareth claims this world-wide, undying remembrance.

You cannot cut Christmas out of the Calendar, nor out of the heart of the world."

~Anonymous

Saying goodbye to Dad (& hey to Korey)

Kenneth Louis McFarland lived from September 13th, 1920, to October 28th, 2011.

He came into my life when I met Keith, his oldest son, in 1967.

He was a dear man who loved his family & looked forward to every visit we made, & every trip he took to visit us.

When the grandkids came along, Keith & I took second place & we didn't mind a bit:) The grandchildren were the apple of his eye.

Cameron spent a number of summers camping with Grandpa & Grandma, & Cameron loved that together time:) Seth & Skye spent special time with them as well:)

Dad belonged to the Christian & Missionary Alliance Church while Mom belonged to the Reformed Presbyterian Church. Now & then I'd go with him to the CMA on a Sunday night, a sweet time together.

He always let me drive him & mom around town, especially his new cars, which was a treat since Keith has never let that happen too often!

He loved the south. If he hadn't loved his western Pa. so dearly, he might have moved to NC, but love of home was too strong. He advised Keith to "go south" if he ever got the chance. And Keith did:)

In the past 3 years, due to declining health, he & Mom moved to The Reformed Presbyterian Home in Pittsburgh, Pa. Mom watched over him like a mother hen, so he was well cared for. His memory slowly faded, but he knew us every time we visited. We saw him last this summer, over July Fourth.

Dad loved a joke & told many one-liners. He loved roses, red roses. He loved the color red & had a number of red cars:) He loved peanut butter. He loved camping:) He loved trains--he worked as an Engineer on the Penn Central Railroad until he retired.

Most of all he loved being with family. We spent a week at Holden Beach years ago, then another week at Mohican State Park in Ohio more recently. He soaked up those times:)

We're planning another gathering out West in the next year or so, the NC McFarlands, the Wisconsin McFarlands, & the PA Carsons--he will be with us in spirit:)

As we said goodbye to Dad/Grandpa, we welcomed the first great grandchild, Korey Calvin McFarland, Kendall & Kristen's son, born in July, into the clan:) Great grandma had not met him, nor had the NC Mc's.

As you can see, he's a sweetheart:)

So, a great grandpa slips to Heaven, & a great grandson slips to Earth.

God is good, always:)