Roots Going Deep

What a couple of weeks it has been.  My blog has been a tad quite, but life has not! 

After my bout with the week-long-mystery sickness (now I think it was just a virus and not the flu...but I digress), Sander was supposed to leave for a week long trip to an off-shore oil rig.  Well, early that Monday morning he was supposed to leave, Dexter had another fever induced seizure.  This one was almost more traumatic in the fact that it happened at 4am in the morning and we were all alone.  I am so thankful Sander was there and had not left yet for the rig, but there were no supportive mom friends or doctors at the hospital to assure me this time it was ok.  We called the after-hours doctor, and then just held Dexter as he went through all the stages of seizure and deep sleep that comes afterwards.  The doctor, when we saw him the next day, said he would be fine, but that more were likely before he turns 5 years old.  Great.  It was caused by a pretty severe ear infection, so the rest of the week I recovered from my sickness and nursed a very grouchy, sleepy toddler back to health.

Sander's trip to the rig was cancelled after the seizure incident and postponed for yet another week.

Then, this last Monday, the day Sander was set to leave, I woke up all night with contractions and then had enough spotting that I was quite worried the next morning.  It was a huge rush to get to the midwives early so Sander would know, "should I stay or should I go?" for yet another week.  After a very long appointment, with lots of different info, the bottom line is I am ok for now, but I need to take it easy and drink lots of water.

Maybe this just sounds like a little list of small problems, but while going through them and before meeting with the doctors, there were definitely a few tears shed.  I forget how fragile life is, and the fact that my heart is beating this morning, or that my small son is breathing, or my baby-yet-to-be-born is still in my womb, is miraculous. 

I spoke to my dear friend Pauline, who is over 80 years old (I say she is my sister separated by age), and she was quite encouraging.  She said that this wasn't happening because I have made mistakes or just need to learn a lesson or two, she said it was happening so my roots could go deep.  She is referring to the story Jesus told that is related in Mark 4:

 He (Jesus) taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: ³ “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴ As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵ Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶ But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷ Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. ⁸ Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”  ...

13 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14 The farmer sows the word. 15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

So, as the craziness of life comes, and the worries and fears of things outside of my control pop up in somewhat frequent occurrence, I want to see them as a chance to trust God.  I want to be like a strong, healthy plant that has roots that are deep -- that can survive the droughts, the floods, and the storms of life.  I guess I can't get deep roots without growth though, and that takes time, and rain, and sun, and pruning.

However, if Monday comes and goes without a dramatic event, I will be more than pleased.