Butterfly Kisses

There are moments in life when you know you’re exactly in the place you’re supposed to be.  This trip back to Dallas was full of those moments.

Back in May, Amanda and I decided we’d surprise our families by coming home for Rosh Hashanah.  Over the next couple of months, a lot of little events started to come into play. 

Most importantly, my Mom set a date for a surgery to fix the mitral valve in her heart - September 18th, three days after our arrival.

Leading up to the surgery, I think besides my mom and dad, most of us in the family weren’t overly concerned.  While there’s always a risk with heart surgery, all the reports and information I’d read made it seem like a fairly routine procedure.

Well, long story short, the valve repair went fine, but the right side of Mom’s heart didn’t respond well to the surgery.  The doctor described her as critical.  My mind kept racing - no way, this isn’t right.  Critical? She was supposed to have surgery and then pop back up in a week or so.  Critical? Isn’t that the term I hear on TV dramas?

It led to some very scary moments and days, but for the most part, I always had faith that the doctors would figure it out and that Mama would get things turned around.

For the next 10 days, she was under sedation as the medical staff threw “the kitchen sink” at her.  They were playing a constant balance game to make sure that she was getting better.

This is where I feel like it was a blessing to be home.  How would I have been able to handle this in Singapore? I’d be checking my phone every five minutes.  I needed to be there with my family.

And this was the moment I didn’t want to miss.  Friday, September 28, 2012.  My mom’s 61st birthday, and she delivered her own present. Mama was able to wake up, get the breathing tube out and get her body working on its own.

We hear the term “heart” all the time in sports, well, talk about showing Texas size heart.  It’d be tough to make the script any better. 

With the understanding of my office in Singapore, I was able to extend my stay for an extra week.  It was incredible to watch her get better day by day.  Each time there’d be something new - more talking or being able to pick up and eat blue berries by herself.  Small things that most of us take for granted, but for Mama, they’re giant steps on the road to recovery. 

While this trip was spent mostly at the hospital, that actually afforded me more time with the family. There was still time for some great barbeque, mum making with the Rudes and maybe the highlight, my first ever eagle on a golf course. 

As good as an eagle is, nothing will compare to seeing my mom awake again.  It’s tough to feel so helpless.  This is the woman that raised me, and it’s difficult to just sit aside while she’s asleep.

Seeing her talking, even if it is struggled because of a sore throat, lifts a huge worry.  She’s getting better day by day, but she still has a long way to go.

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Anyone that knows Mom can tell you she doesn’t lack for showing affection.  Whoever you are, you’re the perfect size for hugging - we’ve all heard that right? Well, in the hospital bed it’s much harder for her to wrap her arms around you, but we shared in of our oldest traditions, butterfly kisses.

A rare way to tell someone you love them with all your heart.