My sister-in-law, Jen, has a special gift of connecting with people. People have a way of opening up to her. In turn, Jen has a way of soothing and supporting. Her natural talent, coupled with some recent events in her life have inspired her to go back to school (in addition of being a full time Mom to three!) for crisis counseling. Selflessly, she plans to use these skills to help others in need.
This week, I was both touched and honored to learn that Jen had included Shaw in a recent assignment. In her humanities course, she is studying ancient Greek culture and Greek epics. She was asked to write a 'mini epic' that includes a hero, obstacles and hope.
By definition, an Epic is noting poetic composition, usually centered upon a hero, in which a series of great achievements or events is narrated in elevated style. Epics are also described as heroic, majestic, impressively great.
How fitting, Jen chose to write her epic about Baby Shaw...
My nephew, Shaw, is about to
celebrate his first birthday next month. He was born very prematurely, at
twenty-seven weeks. He was barely two pounds and was about the size of a ‘Beanie
Baby’. Shaw’s parents were told
that he had a ten to twenty percent chance of survival. As Shaw struggled in the neonatal
intensive care for four months, he endured countless medical procedures and
interventions. These ranged from
blood transfusions to intubation to brain surgery. Every day of survival became a miracle.
His life then and now continues to
be all about reaching milestones. He has been diagnosed with hydrocephalus
(swelling of the brain), which requires a permanent shunt, possible cerebral
palsy, and brain damage. Shaw is still
working at sitting up at eleven months old. He has a way to go still. He is
trying to make sounds and time will tell us whether or not Shaw will be able to
communicate verbally. He smiles, a lot and for that we are all truly grateful.
He is a happy baby and has a bright future as God’s child no matter the
circumstance.
When his parents had decided on the
name Shaw, it was to honor a past ancestor. Shortly after his birth, they came
to learn that in the Old English language, ‘Shaw’, means dweller in/by the woods.
His start in this world has certainly been a challenge and his future
will be beset by some limitations. However, Shaw has emerged out of the woods
and continues to grow stronger every day.
While we call him “Mighty Shaw”, we in the family, all unequivocally
acknowledge God has the true hero of this epic tale. From this little life we
have all learned the blessing of a healthy child, the need for total dependence
on God for all things and most importantly, that God is not measured in
percentages.
Jennifer, Candace, Stephanie
Christmas 2012
3 comments:
How truly blessed we are to have so many caring and wonderful people in our family
Forgot to say that the post was from Dee Dee
sister-in-laws are the best! great pic and story. xo
Post a Comment