DAVID TURNS 25 TODAY!!!

It seems impossible. My youngest son is turning 25 … TODAY!

There are lots of reasons I could give for this feeling of impossibility, and many people would instantly identify. However, not so many people would guess correctly the main reason for my feeling this way. You see, on my birthday twenty-three years ago, my husband and I were told that David had less than a year to live. He had been diagnosed with a terminal disease. Nothing in life has been as painful as that moment.

But … David is turning twenty-five today!! YES ! I’m writing today to outwardly proclaim what I’ve been proclaiming inside for the past 23 years: PRAISE GOD for willing that there be a life for this young man, David Allison! His life has changed mine.

I hope you will PRAISE GOD with me for the impact that he and his life have had upon others: our family, our church family, our friends, his friends, and his doctors and teachers. There isn’t anyone who has known David, really known him, who won’t recognize this delighted grin in his pictures below…

So, because the earlier diagnosis was actually incorrect, as discovered by an outstanding doctor (his very own pediatrician from birth)... David has lived to celebrate many birthdays, and TODAY is his 25th!

Praise God for people who do the very best they can at their job… every day! One day, one little “no-longer-significant” blood test provided the information that gave my son his life back. Someone took their responsibility seriously! May we all learn from this, and put everything we have into everything we do. Daily. Someone’s life may depend upon it!

And what a life it has been!! YES, filled with ups and downs! Whose life isn’t? YES, costly in the financial sense. Whose life isn’t? But what a life he has had – fitting in fun whenever he could… garnering pet names for himself, such as Davey-Wavey, Pretzel-Man, Seabiscuit, and now the grown up “Uncle Dave”.

TOMORROW, I'll post his story in pictures - as a part of our celebration!

SO… WILL YOU CELEBRATE DAVID’S 25th WITH US??

In asking you to join in our celebration, please remember that David doesn't need any gifts for his birthday. He doesn’t really want them . He isn’t into THINGS… unless they are chocolate or music - he is only interested in experiencing those, not stockpiling them!

Instead… to those of you who DO know David, or who know OF David, or who have grown to LOVE David… maybe you'd consider contributing a token amount to just one of the following groups, programs, ministries, churches, or facilities. They ALL do an outstanding, remarkable, and NECESSARY job of helping those who need a little help (or a lot!). It'd be great to know that some of these people and organizations would be receiving needed funds to carry on their work with and for people with special needs. David would love that!

How about donating, perhaps 25 dollars (or 25 cents!), to an organization or group that is working to help families and individuals who have special needs? Take a look below at the ones which have directly impacted David’s life.

SPIRITUAL Opportunities…
*Special Connections Ministry at Briarwood Presbyterian Church, in Birmingham, AL
... David’s current church friends - providing Sunday School class, friendship, and activities
*The JOY Ministry at Graceview Baptist Church, in Northwest Houston (Tomball, TX)
... David’s church friends, TX - provided him Sunday School, Bible Study, and a Christian Day Hab experience (prior to 2006)
* Sylvania Church, in Tyler TX
... David’s first experience of acceptance and accommodations in a church class … please give in honor of Dona Stone, his first teacher - she welcomed him with open arms!

EDUCATIONAL and CONTINUING EDUCATIONAL Opportunities…
*LINCPoint, by UCP-Birmingham – providing a wonderful set of programs - including the Day Habilitation Program which David currently attends weekdays
*St. Louis School - Wayne D. Boshears Center for Exceptional Programs -giving children with special needs a sense of independence and freedom within appropriate educational settings, and providing therapies and so much more for children with severe disabilities and special needs. (David attended 1992-2000)

RECREATION Opportunities
*Camp CAMP, in TEXAS (David is an 11-year veteran “special” CAMP-er!)
*Camp ASCAA, in ALABAMA (David attends for the first year this year!)
*Special Olympics bowling team – “The JOY Angels “from Graceview Baptist Church

MEDICAL Support and Opportunities…
PLEASE support the Children’s Hospitals…
in TX, AL, or ANY Children’s Hospital near you!

*UT-HSC, Univ. Texas Health Science Center - Houston, TX … provided research benefits, hospitals, and healthcare to David… 2000-2006.
*UAB Clinics and Hospital - Birmingham, AL … providing research benefits, hospital and healthcare to David… beginning 2006.

Thank you for your generosity!
And whatever you decide to do,

Please... tell them,
“David sent me”!

(Replies and comments are welcome. REPLIES to emails containing this information should be sent to: DavidAllison.turns25@yahoo.com COMMENTS to the blog will be monitored, but WILL show up later! : ) Please do not add more than one comment! )

Monday Musings...

This weekend we are taking David to camp for a week. It's going to be a little different for us, because we've never taken our son to this particular camp. But it will be a familiar adventure for him, since he's attended camp for the past 11 years, in TX. (We lived there until the fall of 2006.)

Although I am anxious to get some time with my spouse that doesn't include all of the responsibilities of having a son with special needs... I'm feeling a bit timid about the actual process of dropping him off. After all, this camp will be a new experience for our son's parents too! (that's me and my husband, of course!) We don't know the ropes, and we don't know the personnel, and we don't even know for sure the steps through the process.

So many things are like this for those of us who are parents of children who have special needs. Though a thing (camp, in this case) SOUNDS familiar or similar to something other parents have gone through... it might not actually be all that similar. For instance, maybe we will have medications to take with us and to explain to the camp staff, or maybe it will be the behavior of our child with special needs that needs our explanations.

But the other parents who drop off kids at camp, they probably have similar things to explain... and probably even similar feelings. They may feel that they have the SAME feelings about letting their child attend camp. Maybe it's a time of rejoicing that they'll have some peace and quiet; maybe it is that they'll get to do something that they can't do easily with their children along; or maybe it's that they are happy to be able to provide an adventure for their kids that the kids would otherwise not have. This is all similar to what parents of children with special needs feel... and yet it doesn't end there. But wait... oh, wait a minute!

Is it possible that parents of children with special needs don't understand what parents with what is referred to as "typical" children go through either? Isn't it really possible that, from either side of the coin, we do not have a clear view of the OTHER side? Isn't it possible that things, which each set of parents take for granted or worry about, are just as hard to conceive of whether you have a typical child or one who has special needs?

I'm not trying to say that one of these kinds of parenthood is easier or more difficult. ALL parenting is difficult. I'm trying to address an issue about whether or not BOTH kinds of parents are receiving the kind of encouragement and assistance that they need in order to be successful. Isn't it possible that by separating ourselves into different "camps" that we are indeed making it more difficult? Could it be that we might actually learn something from each other... across these boundaries that we have imagined between our groups?

I have friends who feel comfortable stating that they are in one or the other group of parents. I also have friends who are parents that have both kinds of children - those with special needs and those who are labelled "typical". What I see with these parents is that they know this: Parenting is one area of life where even the kinds of needs our children have doesn't change one important guideline for supporting others (our children, friends, or anyone!)... that of being considerate and understanding. We can be of such great encouragement to each other if we only could resist separating ourselves into different "camps"!

"Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. "

Romans 12:15
(New American Standard Bible)

...

A special THANKS to all my friends out there...
YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!!! : )

And for the record,
I'll be REJOICING this week - all week long,
and even into next week!

with much JOY,

CAROL

...

My Hiding Place...

The LORD God is... my hiding place.

...

"You are a hiding place for me;
you preserve me from trouble;
you surround me with shouts of deliverance. "

Psalm 32:7 (ESV)

...

"You have been a refuge for the poor,
a refuge for the needy in his distress,
a shelter from the storm
and a shade from the heat."


Isaiah 25:4 (NIV)

Monday Musings...

This past week was a long week for me. My husband was out of town all week helping our oldest son with a few projects at their new house in TX. I was at home with our youngest son who has special needs. I was also NOT in TX where my two young grandchildren live. So time seemed to pass more slowly than it normally does.

Many things happened during the week to keep me extra-busy with caregiving chores for my 25-yo young-adult son... and so it was indeed a challenging week. In addition to the unexpected things that came up, some of our most-repeated challenges were especially challenging this week. But nothing happened that surprised the Lord, of course... and He had, in fact, prepared us ahead of time to be able to take care of those things that came up. God is so good!

And God is also ESPECIALLY good! He provided help for me for two days of the week, from my husband's mother. She is the family's "Energizer bunny", and a true blessing. Additionally the Lord provided an element of surprise. In more ways than one! : )

One of my nicer surprises was that I received a phone call from a friend from our church in TX. She was coming to Birmingham for a baby shower and would have time to visit with me on Saturday! Wonderful! I have missed my church friends from TX so very much since our move 3 years ago, and making contact with one of them is always a treat. And, during this challenging week, I not only got to hear from one of my friends from the past... I got to invite her into my home to sit and have a little bit of conversation with her! It was particularly encouraging to me!

God knows our needs. He doesn't need us to itemize them for Him on some sort of holy to-do list. In fact, that is FAR from what we need to do. What we need to do is to talk to Him regularly in prayer. In speaking to Him (prayer), we need to voice our awe at His unique position as God of all. As we talk with Him about our inadequacies, we need to commit to trusting Him to provide for the needs. And we need to share our thankfulness with Him. And when we've talked to Him this way, it is quite natural to share with Him the challenges that we see others around of us facing, too.

This week, amidst my own challenges, I did spend time talking with the Lord. And as a result, I think I was able to face the week without crumbling... and to lift up to Him the needs in the lives of those around me, asking Him to sustain them as well. And I know He did.

So how'd your week go? I'd love to hear about it in the
comments section... or in a private email if you wish to use that method.
Let's stay in touch, sharing this life and blessing the Lord together.

" Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever Amen."

...

Revelation 7:12

Sabbath Rest...

Jesus loves me, this I know...

... for the Bible tells me so!

.