in the blink of an eye

This afternoon we were planning to go with our next door neighbors up to her parents cabin just north of here. We planned to hike, let the kids play, then have dinner with her parents. We touched base about an hour before leaving and she told me she wasn't sure if her 3-year-old was feeling well...he had been very lethargic all day. I met her out at the van to get our stuff loaded up a few minutes before leaving and she said he still hadn't perked up. She was puzzled about what was going on and wondered out loud if he could be diabetic (her husband is) and she went back inside to prick his finger. Well...long story short, his blood sugar was sky high and they headed to the ER where the doctor said it probably is juvenile diabetes...nothing else generates that kind of a spike in kids blood sugar. So in the blink of an eye their lives have changed. Oh and did I mention that in addition to their 3-year-old, they have 13 month old twins??? They've got so much on their plate already and now this!?!

And the day that Sarah had her birthday party, my friend (who did the party for us) got a phone call from her mom. Her mom hadn't been feeling well for a few weeks but had gone to the doctor that day and they found many suspicious spots that needed attention. She headed to the Mayo Clinic and got a report this week that they were all malignant, very widespread, and that surgery wasn't an option. In the span of one week (the blink of an eye) things went from bad to worse. It's very overwhelming stuff. And I feel so helpless in all of this. All I can and know to do is pray...but somehow it doesn't feel like it's enough. But if you want to pray too, please join me. For the Richardson and Luhring families.

This morning we had an amazing church service. On Sunday nights in June, our church offered a class on Psalms. John was one of three that led the class, and a huge part of it involved the participants writing their own psalms...ones of thanksgiving, praise, and lament (more, but I can't recall the other forms right now). In place of the sermon this morning several volunteered to share their psalms corporately, and it was a beautiful worship experience. It was so courageous of those folks to "lift the veil" and let us peer deep into their hearts for a few minutes. John probably has words to express how moving it was, but I find myself lacking the words. Just know it was a rich time. And then...in the blink of an eye...the fire alarms started going off right before communion. In a really calm voice, our pastor asked everyone to gather their belongings and leave the building (a real life fire drill!!!) It was surreal. We all gathered on the lawn right in front of Shove Chapel and without skipping a beat, Pastor Ken led us right into communion with the alarms still blaring and the siren of the firetrucks en route wailing in the background. Can't say I've ever experienced anything like that before. But it was wonderful. We sang a cappella and everyone just lingered there after we formally dismissed. It was the most memorable service we've attended in a long time.

Interestingly, across the campus lawn (our church meets in the chapel on the Colorado College campus) there is a huge parking lot where most of our church members park. This morning, that parking lot was the starting line-up point for the Gay Pride parade through downtown Colorado Springs. So while we were having this beautiful service out on the campus lawn, there is a huge hoopla going on about 300 yards away. We had to do some explaining to our kids on the way to the van...men dressed in drag isn't something they see everyday. Maybe one of the more humorous moments of the day though.

**UPDATE**
I just had another thought or two to add to the above post. First, our church was fine. There wasn't a fire but there was quite a bit of smoke. The college and our church have partnered together and every Sunday afternoon they feed the homeless in downtown Colorado Springs. They were grilling something today and it burned and the smoke triggered the alarms. So that's all good!

The other thing is that we really love our neighborhood...because we love our neighbors. They're not just our neighbors, they're our friends. Last night, my next door friend and I left our kids at home with our husbands and went to Target, then out for dinner. And we were planning to join them this afternoon until a trip to the ER changed things a bit. That's what makes the diabetes thing so hard for us. Last night we were talking over dinner about potty-training, time-outs, and other kid stuff...tonight they're facing a major health concern with their young child. Because they're our friends it affects us too.