Thursday, April 12, 2007

Could you speak up please?

Why, no I can't! ( in a frog whisper) Losing your voice when you have 3 kids is quite a lesson in patience and humility.
I started losing my voice on Easter afternoon. I wasn't feeling that bad, just got hoarse and thought it was allergies. By Monday afternoon I thought I had caught one or both of Piper's flu bugs and had very little voice. My throat was raw and hurting pretty badly. By Tuesday afternoon it was extremely painful to swallow or attempt to talk. Tuesday night I went to an after hours urgent care clinic and was diagnosed with strep throat. Today is the first day I feel like I might live through it. I never knew strep could be so very painful.
I have never been without a voice for this long and it's been frustrating & difficult. It's one of those things you just completely take for granted until its gone. I never realized how much I talk and much I miss it when I cannot do it without intense pain! Talking is the main way I connect with the kids and I have felt so bad to not be able to carry on a conversation with them or read them a book. Piper just looks at me with a puzzled expression and I feel so bad not being able to talk to her. My mom came over yesterday to help and I felt much better that the kids had someone to talk to them and read to them.
Yesterday Hunter came home from school with a permission slip for me to sign for a field trip. I whispered to him and asked if he wanted me to go on the field trip. "Will you have a normal voice by then?" I shook my head yes and he said, "well, then, yes I want you to go."
I also realized I do a lot of needless talking and that sometimes being quiet is a good thing. When you can't talk you have a lot more time to think, and that's a good thing! One thought that crossed my mind was, what if we only had a certain amount of voice to use each day? What would I choose to use it for, what would I choose to not use it for?
Proverbs 21:23 "He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity."
James 1:26 "If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless." whoa! I am praying the God would use this experience to help me and give me self control in this area. Oh, how I need help!

Piper Update
Obsession - Compulsive preoccupation with a fixed idea
She is a girl obsessed with walking, if only she had the strength and balance. She spends her days looking for a pair of hands to hold onto so she can walk the house. That is ALL she wants to do, and I am not exaggerating! Every once in a while she will accidentally get distracted by something for a few minutes and then it's like she suddenly remembers, and she's looking for some hands to walk her. I have never seen a child so determined to walk. It's pretty amazing as she did not want any weight on her feet when we first got her. I don't think she'd ever had any weight on them and her muscles were just very weak. Now, she will just keep going and going and going, even when its obvious her legs are getting tired, she will not stop. That's our girl!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi Everyone, We can't wait to hug Hunter, Ella & Piper. Reading your posts just make us feel like we can just walk over and experience the same things you, Dena & Scott, enjoy everyday. There must be times when you want to just have a quite moment...so normal. When I think about you, Dena, with strep throat and so very much to get accomplished each day I just want to help you. As you remember, my own parents died early...I was 25 years old and so often thought it would be so nice to just call and "cry"!!! You guys have Don & Dottie and I am so very thankful for their presence in your lives. Scott, you did good!!! We want to see you, just need to get with you & make some plans; later when things have settled down a bit. It is so exciting to hear that Piper is loving to walk & walk & walk. What a courageous little girl! Just think, new mom & dad, sister & brother and a whole family; new home, new citizenship, a whole new future, strange language and also, weird looking people who have round eyes. Yet, with all of these happings Piper smiles and strives to grow into the person she is meant to be . WOW...sounds like we all DID GOOD!!! My grandma feelings are really seeping today...miss all of you. Papa Roman & Mama Linda