A Note from Peege

Dad is doing okay. The exciting news is that P.J. and Kersta are in town for the weekend...I know Pops loved seeing them, so I thought Peege could do the blogging and share his thoughts from today:

Its days like today that I will never forget. Kersta and I walked into the rehab unit unsure of what to expect. The last time we had seen dad he was heavily sedated and still under incredible trauma in the ICU. For us the last 7 weeks consisted of logging online and talking to family to get the latest updates. We were blessed to have an afternoon of sitting by his side and just being thankful of his presence. Today was pretty simple, after the mornings commotion of the grandkids and a haircut dad was pretty tired so we took a nap in his bed while he dozed off next to us in his chair. Later in the afternoon we were able to hear him work the vocal chords a bit. We talked about God's plan and our need to live with a spirit of gratitude for all that we have. I asked him a lot of questions, many of which I was eager to ask. He also had a number of questions for us which was great because we were told that he needs to strengthen his vocals and throat muscles. He was very enthusiastic and interested to hear about our new life in Colorado. He asked questions about our jobs, our friends and he reminded us again and again how much he loved us. It was a very sweet afternoon. One of the most memorable moments was when I asked him if he had anger with the situation or at God. He responded with saying, "God...no, I am not angry at Him, He has been so good to me." Another great moment was when we were touching his left hand and he told me to lift it up. When I lifted it up he showed us how he could make a little wrist movement and he said with his gentle voice "That gives me hope." All in all it was a great day. I am so thankful for having a dad that is allowing the Lord to work in his heart. Dad is still dad and despite his very fragile condition I can't believe how he still does all that he can to put his family first. Praise God for the work He has done in dad and the work He will continue to do. The battle is not over, there is much more work to be done but as we have read in the book of John we know that in this world we will have trouble but we must take heart for He has overcome the world. Thank you God for your promise. Thank you also to all of you who continue to cover our family in prayer.