Annesley Writers Forum "From Surviving to Thriving: Part 2" by Jen Armitage for Thursday, 28 August 2014

Annesley Writers Forum "From Surviving to Thriving: Part
2" by Jen Armitage for Thursday, 28 August 2014
A couple months ago, our air conditioner broke. It completely stopped.  We called out a repairman and got the grim news… it was a ridiculously old unit. Any repairs (at a price tag of $1600) may not even last the summer.
Our “choice” was to take on a monthly payment we couldn’t afford or roast our children. Now my son, in the middle of his cancer fight, is really sensitive to the world around him. He gets cold easy, and sick in heat fast. Running in the sprinklers and eating a bunch of popsicles wasn’t going to do it.
It seemed like a tough break and a huge financial hit, but here is what we didn’t expect: Because of the broken air conditioner, we found the cracked heating coil. If this had not been found and taken care of it could have led to carbon monoxide leaking into the house and my sick baby’s lungs. It may have never gotten dangerous, but it very well could have.
Maybe, just maybe, the broken air conditioner saved my son’s life.  We don’t know for sure. But it could have.
It’s a good illustration for our life. A year ago, my newborn was diagnosed with cancer, pretty much most parents’ worst fear. Life got complicated. It got hard. At the end of the day my husband and I had nothing left for each other, which made things harder. My husband’s father, who was living with us, died. Double the hard. Our car was broken into, lawn vandalized, daughter decided to go through a phase of tantrums on top of her normal insomnia, I ended up in the emergency room (twice), and a bunch of other stuff that just makes life fun.
All bad stuff right? .
God has used it though- again, possibly saving our lives. Saved may be dramatic, but our lives are sure better now because of it all.
It made me stop. I couldn’t juggle three million things anymore. I had one focus: getting both my kids through the next day. I didn’t have time for insecurities about whether people really liked me or not, or why I didn’t have more friends. It made me simplify everything in my life. I think all four of us are better for that.
It got me to write. I blogged once every four months prior, but after the diagnosis, it was almost every day. I needed it. I had long loved writing, but stopped after being discouraged with a lack-of-talent problem. I never could find my own voice. After the diagnosis, I reconnected with my love for it, and it reminded me of how much it helped me find God in my early life. I eventually found my voice. Some days, writing is the only peace emotionally that I have, but that’s huge. I’m so grateful.
It radically changed my faith. I was a super churchgoer before everything happened, but there is something about being so desperate for God to be with you, just so you can make it through the day, that changes things. It made me learn more about hope, getting strength from God, and just having that continual communication with Him I always wanted but never could quite achieve.
It made my husband realize he was depressed. Not depressed over his son having cancer, but depressed before that. He had lived with it for so long, he thought that was just the way he was. Cancer was the last straw that showed him he had a lot weighing down his heart. The best part is, when you realize something like that, you realize you can fight it, work on it, and get better – not deal with “that’s just the way it is.” It’s been a tough healing process, one we are still in the middle of. But through it, I’ve seen more strength in my husband and he’s inspired me in so many ways.
There is a laundry list of more ways God has used this “tragedy” as an opportunity to grow us and kicked our butt with stuff we only took lightly before.
As hard as it’s been…and it’s been beyond hard…I can guarantee you that we are coming out of this (whenever we are “out”) so much better people, spouses, and parents than we were before.
That’s all God.
For the next several weeks, we will be sharing more from Jen’s journey.
“Visit Jen’s website to learn more about her journey. http://thebadatcleaningblog.com“
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You may view the latest post at
http://www.annesleywriters.com/from-surviving-to-thriving-part-2/
Best regards,
Annesley Writers Forum
annesleywriters@annesleywriters.com
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