BIRTHday......part one....
Parklen is turning six tomorrow......in case you haven't heard.
Its bigger than just a birthday for him....
bigger for me,
bigger for our family.....
It is cause for celebration....
a deeper type of celebrating.....
more than a
"happy birthday."....
for reasons that are far beyond any sense of understanding I could convey.....
I promise a deep post tomorrow.....
but tonight....
I would love to tell you about our day yesterday.
Like his sisters birthday just a few weeks ago, we had to keep things low key.
but.......it was far too painful a thought.....to just sit at home.....
Parklen has been through so much....
far too much.....
Parklen has been struggling to live to his birthday....every. single. year.......of his life.
This last year has been even more difficult.....
I had called one of the movie theaters here in town to try and convince them to allow Parklen and his family a private viewing of a movie.....to no avail.
I mentioned to a friend that I would love to do something amazing for his birthday.....
she took my words and put them into action. She made calls.....she made progress....
It has been years since Parklen has been to a theatre....
so long since he has been to a restaurant.....
When I go to a gas station to fill up he says things like, "I just wish I could go into that place....."
I am not exaggerating when I say....he goes nowhere.
If it isn't a doctors office, a hospital, Brent's place or our home....he isn't there.
Yesterday morning we woke up early, well, for a Saturday......
We loaded up in the car.....
and we headed down town.
It was just us in the lobby of that movie theatre.....
not but one other person there.....
the one who allowed us the opportunity....
In we went.....
we loaded up on popcorn and drinks....
Parklen got to pick the movie he wanted to see.
The Amazing Spiderman II.......
It had only come out the day before.....
You could see the grin behind his mask....
that green mask that covers most of his face....
big, but not big enough to hide his pure delight.....
As we let Parklen choose his seat....my heart was racing....
When people put kindness into action it speaks to a very deep deep part of me.
It is so easy to say, "I'm here for you...."
it is easy to offer nice things verbally.....everyone is guilty of it.....using just words....
but when someone.....especially someone who doesn't know us personally.....chooses to offer up a piece of themselves it brings tears to my eyes.....
Even as I type these words right now.....tears fill my eyes.
We filed in to the row in the middle of the auditorium....
just us....
no one else....
and we sat there for the duration of a very long, action packed movie.....
not a care in the world.
There Parklen sat.....
in public.....
snuggled into that theatre seat that was covered in a sheet and smelled of Clorox wipes and Lysol......
he felt important....
and maybe.....just maybe, if only for a little while......
he felt like an average boy......
just out to the movie with his family.
He didn't have to wish he could go somewhere that day....
because he had.
We left the theatre a little different.....
a family touched again by kindness......
a family blessed to feel normal......
a family.....together.....
Parklen walking to the car with a poster in hand and memories to last a lifetime....
a little boy, the star of the morning.....
special.....
a celebration of a birthday so important......
a stranger, who will probably never be able to fully grasp the amazing opportunity he gave our boy.....
After the show we headed home.....
there were decorations, cake and gifts awaiting Parklen.....
His great grandma and his Nana drove over to watch him open his gifts....
he never minded that there weren't friends over....
he never mentioned that he wished he had a bigger party....
I like to think that even at his young age.....
the years that he has lived.....
the years that he has suffered.....
have given him a glimpse at the things that are important....
all he cared about was that his family was there.....
that he had a cake to call his own.....
and that he got to be the star of the day.....
I will undoubtedly spend a good portion of my day tomorrow in tears......
over the emotional and amazing year we have had.....
reflection over where Parklen has been.....
over what has occurred in the past year.....
but make no mistake.....
I will not let a moment go by where I do not go out of my way to help Parklen to see the amazing miracle that he is......
Tomorrow will not be wasted.....
Parklen will wake up knowing how special he is......
and tomorrow when he lays his head on his pillow,
my prayer will be that he falls asleep overwhelmed with love.....
that he closes his eyes as a six year old and knows......that his birthday is more than just a day to celebrate with cake and goodies.....
That he will feel God's hand upon him and that he will know.......that he is a miracle.
Our miracle.....
Paysen woke up yesterday with a headache and by the end of the day was being seen in the ER.....
being overly cautious can be exhausting....
but it is so worth it when I look at Parklen and the progress he has made....
Show me a fever......any fever, and I will show you to the doctor......
Poor guy........
a few doses of medicine to treat Paysen's infected sinus' and he is back to his wild self....
In spite of this little attempt to steal our joy.....
we still had the best day yesterday!!!
Its bigger than just a birthday for him....
bigger for me,
bigger for our family.....
It is cause for celebration....
a deeper type of celebrating.....
more than a
"happy birthday."....
for reasons that are far beyond any sense of understanding I could convey.....
I promise a deep post tomorrow.....
but tonight....
I would love to tell you about our day yesterday.
Like his sisters birthday just a few weeks ago, we had to keep things low key.
but.......it was far too painful a thought.....to just sit at home.....
Parklen has been through so much....
far too much.....
Parklen has been struggling to live to his birthday....every. single. year.......of his life.
This last year has been even more difficult.....
I had called one of the movie theaters here in town to try and convince them to allow Parklen and his family a private viewing of a movie.....to no avail.
I mentioned to a friend that I would love to do something amazing for his birthday.....
she took my words and put them into action. She made calls.....she made progress....
It has been years since Parklen has been to a theatre....
so long since he has been to a restaurant.....
When I go to a gas station to fill up he says things like, "I just wish I could go into that place....."
I am not exaggerating when I say....he goes nowhere.
If it isn't a doctors office, a hospital, Brent's place or our home....he isn't there.
Yesterday morning we woke up early, well, for a Saturday......
We loaded up in the car.....
and we headed down town.
 |
| even Phin was getting in on the action |
 |
| giving "Spidey" some knucks |
It was just us in the lobby of that movie theatre.....
not but one other person there.....
the one who allowed us the opportunity....
In we went.....
we loaded up on popcorn and drinks....
Parklen got to pick the movie he wanted to see.
The Amazing Spiderman II.......
It had only come out the day before.....
You could see the grin behind his mask....
that green mask that covers most of his face....
big, but not big enough to hide his pure delight.....
As we let Parklen choose his seat....my heart was racing....
When people put kindness into action it speaks to a very deep deep part of me.
It is so easy to say, "I'm here for you...."
it is easy to offer nice things verbally.....everyone is guilty of it.....using just words....
but when someone.....especially someone who doesn't know us personally.....chooses to offer up a piece of themselves it brings tears to my eyes.....
Even as I type these words right now.....tears fill my eyes.
We filed in to the row in the middle of the auditorium....
just us....
no one else....
and we sat there for the duration of a very long, action packed movie.....
not a care in the world.
There Parklen sat.....
in public.....
snuggled into that theatre seat that was covered in a sheet and smelled of Clorox wipes and Lysol......
he felt important....
and maybe.....just maybe, if only for a little while......
he felt like an average boy......
just out to the movie with his family.
He didn't have to wish he could go somewhere that day....
because he had.
We left the theatre a little different.....
a family touched again by kindness......
a family blessed to feel normal......
a family.....together.....
Parklen walking to the car with a poster in hand and memories to last a lifetime....
a little boy, the star of the morning.....
special.....
a celebration of a birthday so important......
a stranger, who will probably never be able to fully grasp the amazing opportunity he gave our boy.....
After the show we headed home.....
there were decorations, cake and gifts awaiting Parklen.....
His great grandma and his Nana drove over to watch him open his gifts....
he never minded that there weren't friends over....
he never mentioned that he wished he had a bigger party....
I like to think that even at his young age.....
the years that he has lived.....
the years that he has suffered.....
have given him a glimpse at the things that are important....
all he cared about was that his family was there.....
that he had a cake to call his own.....
and that he got to be the star of the day.....
I will undoubtedly spend a good portion of my day tomorrow in tears......
over the emotional and amazing year we have had.....
reflection over where Parklen has been.....
over what has occurred in the past year.....
but make no mistake.....
I will not let a moment go by where I do not go out of my way to help Parklen to see the amazing miracle that he is......
Tomorrow will not be wasted.....
Parklen will wake up knowing how special he is......
and tomorrow when he lays his head on his pillow,
my prayer will be that he falls asleep overwhelmed with love.....
that he closes his eyes as a six year old and knows......that his birthday is more than just a day to celebrate with cake and goodies.....
That he will feel God's hand upon him and that he will know.......that he is a miracle.
Our miracle.....
Paysen woke up yesterday with a headache and by the end of the day was being seen in the ER.....
being overly cautious can be exhausting....
but it is so worth it when I look at Parklen and the progress he has made....
Show me a fever......any fever, and I will show you to the doctor......
Poor guy........
a few doses of medicine to treat Paysen's infected sinus' and he is back to his wild self....
In spite of this little attempt to steal our joy.....
we still had the best day yesterday!!!
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