Gerig’s Musings

Today was another moving day for Don.  This time it was to the Rehab Center wing of Covington Manor.  It is strictly for people that need rehab only and not as much ongoing care.  It was nice to get to a room that had a TV and phone, and, while it’s not entirely private, it has a half wall between him and his roommate–kind of like going back to college and having to share a bathroom with a roommate.  So, for those who are interested, his new room is 508B and his phone is 260-435-4035.   He still has his cell phone, as well, which is 260-446-7210.

This week turned into a whirlwind of phone calls and getting records from doctor’s offices, etc.  Our friend in Ann Arbor, Dr. Mike, was able to work miracles for us,  with God’s help!  Don had called him last Sunday asking if he had any contacts with specialists like a neuro oncologist with whom he might be able to set us up.  By Tuesday or Wednesday I was getting e-mails and phone calls from him asking how soon we could come up.  He told me to get all of Don’s records from all of his doctors and a CD of his MRI’s.  I, of course, immediately got on the phone to each doctor’s office to see what would be involved and started making the rounds of signing consent forms.  Some of them wanted to fax the records directly up to a doctor in Michigan, while others gave them directly to me.  While I was in the midst of that I got a call from one of the doctors’ assistants giving me two appointment times with two doctors in the UofM Cancer Center for this coming Monday and asking for pathology reports on top of the other reports.  I’ve been telling people that I believe the Lord had guided us six years ago already when we started volunteering at the hospital because I was familiar enough to go directly to Medical Records and get the pathology reports by simply signing for Don.  Again, another miracle, though, because I happened to have our Power of Attorney paper with me to be able to do that.  (I had just taken them all to the SNF for their records and was still carrying them around in my folio!)  On Thursday I got everything I had sent up to the one doctor’s assistant by overnight UPS.  When I got in the car I said to the Lord,  “I’m sending them off with a wing and a prayer, asking for your wisdom and guidance in this”.  I’ve told friends that I don’t view our going up to Michigan as a magic bullet that will make everything all right, but feel that enough things have come together in miraculous ways to help us both to know it’s the right thing to do even if we don’t get the news we wish for.  Last night our daughter, Denise, mentioned the same thing as I told her about this whole week.  And, I’m not finished with miracles yet.  On top of everything else, our friend, Karin, (who had made her appointment up there three months ago) was to go on Monday, so we are able to go with them in their comfortable van with tilting passenger seats.  I can’t imagine Don having to get into our small car and having the strength to sit way down and get back up again.  It would have been a horrible trip for him that way.  This way we can take a pillow and blanket for him and hope that he can sleep most of the way there and back.

So, we ask for your prayer help as we make the trip to Ann Arbor on Monday–not only that Don will be able to make it without setbacks, but that we will receive valuable help from the specialists up there.  We are so thankful for our many prayer partners!  Just today we got another letter from people we hadn’t seen in a few years that were adding us to their prayer list.  My devotional time today was in I Kings 3  where King Solomon asks for wisdom, above all else.  That is our desire, as well, as we proceed on this new venture.  Thank you for sharing in the journey with us.  Caroline