Most of my "friends" saw the vigil McKala, 14, took with her calf. The outcome plays out here. "Baby" was never "well". It was a good bit smaller than the others and not ever really "hungry". The morning they found it "down", we called and read about everything we could. I stopped at the dairy to get their opinions. There are many kinds of bacterium and viruses that affect cows, especially weak ones. Diarrhea with blood was the presenting problem and the likely diagnosis, Coccidiosis, the overgrowth of a microscopic protozoa.
It's mouth was already cool, not ever a good thing. She brought it into the garage to use a heating pad, hair dryer, and a lamp on it. We found out they can have Gatorade for electrolytes just like the rest of us. We had been told Pepto-Bismol was fine, too, but soon got differing information that the aspirin in it is, of course, bad. They're now owners of a gallon of Kaopectate for animals. Corid is what treats the problem, inhibiting the growth of the parasite until the immune system can ramp up and overcome it. Michael gave it a penicillin shot as a precaution in case it was bacterial instead. After more research and a couple more medications, McKala had it "up" and taking its whole bottle. We went to sleep with a sense of accomplishment.
At 1:30 am, a noise from the garage woke me. The calf had collapsed and was dead. (I've since read we should've had epinephrine and might've revived it.) I decided to go ahead and wake McKala, so she would know before her early rise to bottle feed them all. I expected her to get upset. As I lay back down, I could hear her sobbing loudly through the door in her bed. I hadn't heard it in that fashion since she was a little bitty girl. It was so uncharacteristic that I went back upstairs. Rubbing her arm, I finally asked her why she was "that" upset. She said it was her job to take care of it since it was taken from its mother. That's how dairy farming works. The babies are separated from their mothers within 24 - 72 hours after birth. I have unease about this, probably much like you do. It is the unnatural thing to do, although it's not entirely different from giving an infant a bottle and taking it to daycare having only a few weeks under its wings.
After I returned to bed, frailty of life came to mind. I know it was just an animal, but just 1 bacteria, 1 virus, 1 accident, 1 sinister act and our days could be over, moreover the days of the people we hold dear. Are we all ready, really ready to leave this world? Do we know where we'll be when we cross to the unseen? Is it enough to have already had our reward? Stop and give it sober thought. This question posed to me 19 years ago changed my life. Even so, that night I revisited notions of CPR review because I don't want to be the one standing there with my hands tied. Faith, in my view, is rarely about waiting, at least not waiting ill-prepared.
Sunday, September 11, we were invited to a surprise party. Mike had reservations about "partying" on such a day. I'd remained pretty reserved considering the attention that the 10th anniversary received, but when I saw people waving flags over I -77, Exit 150, it flooded my face with the heat that pushes out tears. If only we all cared so much.
The party cruising the lake was phenominal ...and made possible by the everpresent guard our military insures. Monday rushed in hard though after staying steadily busy since Thursday. I barely got anything done before it was time to take McKala to Driver's Ed and Mike to get his truck from the shop, grab KFC to keep the riots down and Michael for football practice. I can't complain about any of these things. The thing I'm tempted to complain about is my "plan". Here's where I err ...ideally, I'd exercise, read my Bible, teach, clean, run errands and cart around, have meals with prayer over them ...in sweet little allotted times. Guess what. This is real life. We're more likely to get the majority of us together for a prayer in the car. People and animals get sick, things break, minds change, celebrations and devastations continue. Guess what else. Sometimes we need to "chew" on God's Word and don't require a set study hour. (Sometimes a revelation hits me so hard I can't read further.) Does this sound "un"exemplary, maybe disrespectful? I beg your pardon ...because if we walk in the "mentality" of craving God's instruction, we'd have a Bible with us all the time and seize every opportunity to crack it open, if only to bite off a morsel. If we have a "mentality" of good health, we won't wait for the next time it fits in the schedule ...we'll find a way to work activity into the day, even 20 or 30 push ups or knee ups on a park bench. Oh, you're embarrassed? Me too ...but it's better than being feeble and flabby, worse yet - a quiter. We need the "mentality" to teach. A school lesson doesn't work out here because something truly interesting comes up? I need to be able to incorporate it in some other way. I'm not that creative. I appreciate structure. You know why? Because I'm scared. Of what? I was brought up needing someone to tell me how to do things and when to do them. The institution likes it that way. If I have one more person tell me they aren't "patient enough" for this or that, they don't have "discipline" for this or that, they aren't "smart enough" for this or that, the "fill in the blank" for this or that; I just might pull my hair out. Were we not made in the image of God himself? We have the capacity for endless accomplishments. Some things will come easy and the others we'll have to fight for; we'll have to DECIDE to embrace what has already been won for us.
I don't know your problem? Everybody's got 1, 2, 3, or more - people in our lives who are difficult, demanding, needy, unstable, sick, troubled. I've, fullwell, learned that some of these people will "take" 'til we don't have anything left to give. I've also learned it's not an excuse to be any less of a person. So, we have to hang tough to the mentality of Christ - strong in body, mind, and spirit ...REGARDLESS OF and (beautifully) BECAUSE OF anything or anyone else. The unexpected will always happen ...and don't expect that to change. As I heard tonight sitting alone in the car, needing time away from even the people I enjoy, "Don't let your suffering and trials go to waste." Because if we erode away, we'll wake up in 10 years and not recognize whose skin we're in and the people who thought they knew us as someone who "walks the walk" will only know us as someone who let life go by as it pleases.
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