A Midville Miracle – continued

So there I was laying on the ground in the middle of a ranch in Texas unable to get myself up. My friends got me up and put me on the buggy. We dropped two of my friends off to get the truck and my friend, Ralph, drove me off the ranch on the buggy. My dear friend and rancher, along with his wife, met us at the barn. His wife is a nurse and began asking me a multitude of questions in an effort to assess my condition as we waited for the ambulance to arrive.

The ambulance came and I was loaded in the back for my first ambulance ride. They were try-ing to arrange a helicopter to airlift me to the hospital, but it was on another call, so we made the trip to Lubbock in the ambulance. My friend, Ralph, refused to leave me, and he got in and rode in the front of the ambulance to the hospital. I want to thank both of the paramedics for looking after me and getting me safely to the hospital.

On the way, the paramedic asked me any number of questions and constantly checked my vi-tal signs. She excelled in her ability to do her job. I will be forever grateful for both of those la-dies and all they did for me on that cold afternoon in The Rolling Plains of Texas. The para-medic in the back with me did something that was completely out of her job description as well. I wanted to call a friend and let that friend know what was going on. I somehow man-aged to make the call, but in my condition, I was not making a lot of sense. The paramedic, that sweet caring soul, took the phone and told my friend what was going on. I will never for-get that and I will be eternally grateful as well.

We made it to the hospital and the staff there began working on me immediately. After a lita-ny of tests, they put me in the ICU. Once again, my friend Ralph refused to leave. He told me that whatever happened or whatever needed to be done, he was in. It was a long night and I don’t remember sleeping much. The next morning, Ralph along with my friends Sonny and Jim were all there to see me. After that I don’t remember much.

Days later, a lot more days than I first realized, I woke up in another hospital room. My mind was not all that clear, but I had the greatest peace. I had a lifelong friend from Florida who was the first to arrive after I regained consciousness. He was there for three days making sure I was ok. There is only one thing that would make a person come all the way to Texas to check on me. Love. Next, my friend Ralph and his wife came to see me. They were there for three days as well. Love once again had prompted the actions of my friends. Then my friend Travis and his girlfriend arrived. They stayed for three days also. Their arrival was an act of love as well. This whole event for me has been marked by love and friendship, both of which have overwhelmed me in the last three months.

My friends that were on the hunting trip with me have all told me how they felt after my stroke occurred. One friend said he was petrified, scared to death. Another one said that he knew af-ter the first day, when he saw me the next morning, that I would be fine. My other friend was obviously shaken up by what had happened, as were the others, but he held fast and told me later that he had to do whatever was necessary and he did. The one sentiment that was com-mon to them all was having to leave me in Texas. They have all said how difficult it was to get in the truck and come back to Georgia without me. They said it was a long, quiet ride back. Even now, I can’t imagine the thoughts that must have been running through their minds. I truly hate the fact they had to endure the uncertainty that ensued after they left me.

I was moved to a nursing home after I regained consciousness. I was there for therapy, but I received so much more. The first day I was there, a lady came to see me. She was part of the management team. She had something to tell me. She looked right at me and said you’ll walk out of here and you’ll go home and be fine. You will completely recover. Those were very strong words. I was thankful to hear them and I was encouraged to say the least.

She was the first of a whole list of people to tell me the same thing. There was a lady in the nursing home that was there for therapy herself. We became friends. She looked at me one day and reiterated the fact that I would be fine. There were nurses who told me the same thing. A lady who lived near Lubbock came to see me one day. She had been raised in Waynesboro, Ga. We had a lovely visit and she gave me an inspirational book to read, but before she left, she also told me I would be fine. I began to refer to these people as messengers, messengers of God, reassuring me that healing would come.

A man came to visit me one day. He had been contacted by a lady who grew up in Waynesbo-ro, Ga. She had seen a Facebook post about me and reached out to him. He too had grown up in Waynesboro, Ga. We share many mutual friends and soon became friends as well. His name is Eric Dickey. He came to see me daily. He is a man of God. He’s a retired minister, but he is obviously still at work for the Lord.

I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. This event has been no different. I have al-ready seen so much good that has come from this. I received an outpouring of love that has completely overwhelmed me. I’m thankful for all of my friends and all of the folks I don’t know, who have reached out to me, to help me in some way. The Lord always provides, even when things don’t look very optimistic.

The lady at the nursing home came to see me the day before I left. She asked if I remembered what she said. I nodded. She told me that the doctors at the hospital were initially not very op-timistic about my recovery. They were doubtful that I would even live and if I did, my quality of life would not be very good. She looked at me hard and said “you’re a walking miracle”. The next day I walked out of that nursing home just like she said. I’m home now, typing these words out on my keyboard and full of gratitude and thanksgiving. I have lived to see a miracle and it is a profound experience……