Keith Lane
Pattern Altitude
The Happy
Well, we had a birthday yesterday (Oct. 12th).
James (My son) turned six. Incredible to believe that he's already six. Seems like just yesterday that ............
He and Dawn (Mom) and Sara Jean (8 year old sister) took a day off from school to go to Zoo Atlanta and then on to Grammy's house (the In Laws) and the dinner of his choice, pizza from a local Italian restaurant. I drove over there after work to eat pizza and watch his new Veggie Tales video. A good time was had by all. He is the easiest kid in the world to please, and I get immeasurable joy just having him as my "best buddy".
The Sad.
One of Sara Jean and James' friends, a seven year old, is to be buried this Sunday. It's the first time they have been touched by the death of anyone they know. Her mom and Dawn are good friends at church, having been through three years of Bible study classes together. Last Friday, the friend's three kids were finishing up a week at their grandparents farm in Illinois when the grandmother call the parents frantic, telling them only that grandpa had severed his hand in an accident on the farm and that the girl was "on a ventilator". The parents were in Chattanooga, and were leaving to go up to fetch the kids anyway and weren't given any more info than that. What a hellish 8 hour drive that must have been. The girl was standing with her oldest brother (12) up high looking down into a hopper trailer of some kind containing corn from a harvester. The boy was holding her hand and she somehow fell in. She "drowned" in the corn and dust. She was buried for about 12 minutes and probably had no oxygen for most of that time. Grandpa shoved his hand up inside the machine (it was shut down) to try to reach her and severed his hand in the process. It was re-attached except for one finger that night. Meghan, the little girl never regained conciousness and was taken off life support Sunday at 1AM and died immediately. She was a great little kid who sang in the kid's choir and went to Sunday School with my kids. Everybody at the church is devastated. My kids know she is dead, but cannot really grasp the horror of the effect it is having on the parents, grandparents and especially the older brother.
I look at my kids and thank God each day they are OK, and breath a little prayer for the family of Meghan.
Hug 'em and tell 'em how much you luv'em every chance you get. This past week I have looked at my own kids a lot and my throat gets all tight thinking about the unthinkable. I just needed to write this all out to sorta help me deal with it, and you all are sorta family to me, in an odd kind of way.
Take care
Keith
Well, we had a birthday yesterday (Oct. 12th).
James (My son) turned six. Incredible to believe that he's already six. Seems like just yesterday that ............
He and Dawn (Mom) and Sara Jean (8 year old sister) took a day off from school to go to Zoo Atlanta and then on to Grammy's house (the In Laws) and the dinner of his choice, pizza from a local Italian restaurant. I drove over there after work to eat pizza and watch his new Veggie Tales video. A good time was had by all. He is the easiest kid in the world to please, and I get immeasurable joy just having him as my "best buddy".
The Sad.
One of Sara Jean and James' friends, a seven year old, is to be buried this Sunday. It's the first time they have been touched by the death of anyone they know. Her mom and Dawn are good friends at church, having been through three years of Bible study classes together. Last Friday, the friend's three kids were finishing up a week at their grandparents farm in Illinois when the grandmother call the parents frantic, telling them only that grandpa had severed his hand in an accident on the farm and that the girl was "on a ventilator". The parents were in Chattanooga, and were leaving to go up to fetch the kids anyway and weren't given any more info than that. What a hellish 8 hour drive that must have been. The girl was standing with her oldest brother (12) up high looking down into a hopper trailer of some kind containing corn from a harvester. The boy was holding her hand and she somehow fell in. She "drowned" in the corn and dust. She was buried for about 12 minutes and probably had no oxygen for most of that time. Grandpa shoved his hand up inside the machine (it was shut down) to try to reach her and severed his hand in the process. It was re-attached except for one finger that night. Meghan, the little girl never regained conciousness and was taken off life support Sunday at 1AM and died immediately. She was a great little kid who sang in the kid's choir and went to Sunday School with my kids. Everybody at the church is devastated. My kids know she is dead, but cannot really grasp the horror of the effect it is having on the parents, grandparents and especially the older brother.
I look at my kids and thank God each day they are OK, and breath a little prayer for the family of Meghan.
Hug 'em and tell 'em how much you luv'em every chance you get. This past week I have looked at my own kids a lot and my throat gets all tight thinking about the unthinkable. I just needed to write this all out to sorta help me deal with it, and you all are sorta family to me, in an odd kind of way.
Take care
Keith