Bridget is out of the Hospital!!!

Tom writing again....Just 2 short days after major brain surgery, Bridget was released from the hospital amazing all of us. As my Dad keeps saying, "Glory be to God"! She is doing fantastic and is back at our nice cottage on the grounds here at City of Hope...as I type this she is sleeping soundly. I am so glad for this as sleep has not come easily for her over the past weeks.

We both have been so connected throughout this experience with a sense of peace and knowing that God is with us. I have no words to describe this and I'm probably repeating myself from earlier blogs but it has been a life altering experience these past weeks. We have been giving thanks to God for this experience throughout and we have continued to receive signs that He is with us on each and every step. While some of these signs have been on a grand scale such as on the dolphin encounter when Bridget was being given the Happy Birthday boat buoy from the dolphin...I didn't mention earlier that just before she stepped forward to receive the buoy from the dolphin a skywriter plane had begun spelling out something in the sky but we couldn't tell what it was at first. After Bridget received the buoy and was standing there with tears of joy, our son Ben, nudged me and said, "Look Dad, it says...." and there in beautiful backdrop to Bridget were the words written in white on the deep blue sky..."Jesus Loves You". Bridget and I looked at each other and just had to laugh out loud. While this was really a sign on a grand scale, we have had just tons of small intimate signs along the way from God that we understand instantly without having to exchange words, we just look at each other knowingly and smile giving thanks to God. Please don't misunderstand this to mean signs that we have experienced because things now seem to be going well with this journey, these have been signs throughout this process and this knowing that God's grace is all around us is just a constant knowing regardless of whether there is good news or not and that has allowed us to walk this journey in a quiet confidence of peace. Psalm 23 sums this up better than I ever could: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%2023

Today we had probably the most poignant example of God being with us and giving us a gift of his presence than anything we have ever experienced in our lives. Many of you know that Bridget's Mom (Marilyn) played the harp exquisitely. Some of my best memories are of sitting on the screened in porch of her parents country home eating a fresh salad from her garden (she also loved to garden) while listening to her play the harp, often with the sound of crickets accompanying her. Needless to say harps are a strong symbol for Bridget (and her family) representing her Mom who died together with Bridget's Dad in a car accident not long after we were married. That was very tough when there is no warning and no chance to say goodbye. Anyway, prior to leaving home to travel out here Bridget and her sister went to St. Rose Convent where the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration have been praying nonstop for over 150 years (and they have included Bridget in those prayers thanks to many of you contacting them). When they were about to leave, there was an alcove that seemed to be beckoning them so they went toward it and there was a full size gorgeous harp. It gave Bridget a sense that her Mom was with her on this journey.

Later we were at the Minneapolis airport to fly out to California for all of this and Bridget unexpectedly ran into her sister Susie near the gate. As they were standing there, someone came by pulling a full size harp...they looked at each other in amazement. Today after Bridget was released from the ICU/hospital, we were standing waiting on the elevator so we could leave, and then almost as if in slow motion, the elevator doors opened and there before us was a wonderful lady with a harp! We just gave each other "the look" and laughed with joy at God's grace. Have any of you ever seen this many harps out in public? Its not like they are some common instrument like a guitar that is easy to cart around.

Bear with me here, the story is not over. About two hours later we were back at the clinic meeting with another wonderful staff member here, Candy, the nurse in radiation oncology who was explaining what to expect when the radiation treatments start. Once again, Bridget was connecting on a very personal and spiritual level with this wonderful person. As we were about to wrap things up, a harp began playing right next to the open door of the exam room we were in. It was like time stood still, Candy the nurse stopped talking, as she could see from Bridget's expression that something very important was happening here. Bridget began sobbing, I began crying. These were happy, blessed tears of joy at this gift Bridget was being given that her sweet Mom is with her, God is with her...the harp continued playing, I recognized the song to be Con Te Partiro (I'll Go With You) by Andrea Bocelli. We tried several times to get back to finishing up with Candy as she was very busy and needed to see other patients, but she continued to take time to nurture Bridget body and soul and let her experience that eternal blissful moment. We just kept lifting out heads, closing our eyes and soaking in that wonderful music to our soul as the tears of joy kept flowing. Wow!!! People I am generally not a real cryer, my kids probably have seen me cry once when we buried our first dog....but there is nothing else one can do when you experience this kind of Grace first hand.

The song is very special and very powerful, you have likely heard it. It is sung in Italian, here are some of the lyrics translated in English:

When I'm alone
I dream on the horizon
and words fail.....

I'll go with you, to places I never
saw and shared with you, now, yes
I shall experience them. I'll go with you
on ships across the seas....
with you I shall experience them.

Yes, I know that you are with me; you my
moon, are here with me, my sun, you are here with me, with me, with me....
with you I shall experience them again. I'll go with you, I with you.

Here is Andrea performing this song on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcrfvP11Hbo

As for me, I am slow dancing to this song with Bridget in our room now. Maybe you'll want to try that too with the love of your life. Live in the moment and there are no words!