Here's a story that is too good not to share. And because those who do read my blog are people of faith, I am not hesitant to do so.
When Don got sick in Mongolia, it was instantly and completely - literally "over night." We had "turned a corner" and found ourselves in the Twilight Zone! Don was in a antiquated hospital in a country half way around the world from our home and I was staying with him every minute I could. There wasn't a cafeteria in the hospital, nor was there any place nearby I could buy anything to eat. Even water was difficult to get. My own health was somewhat put in jeopardy by the circumstances. Senior missionaries brought me food and water which sustained me. Food, of course, was off limits to Don so his pancreas could begin to heal.
The hospital was strange. We were on the top floor. Stepping off the elevator onto the sixth floor was like stepping into an abandoned building. There was a nurses' station but there was not so much as a piece a of paper on the counter and it was kept dark. I actually took the chair at the desk and brought it into Don's room to use as a side table for him. The few times I did leave or go into the hall, I never saw another person in that hallway.
Additionally, sleeping was haphazard, on-and-off day after day for me. The table I slept on had no padding and being hard, made my bones ache. When I did sleep it was from pure exhaustion.
Don was so sick and in such excruciating pain. He kept as sedated as he could keep himself with percocet which we actually got from the mission doctor. There was nothing given for pain by doctors and nurses.
To pass the time, I tried reading a book aloud to Don. We have enjoyed reading books to each other several times in the past. But one chapter was all he could get through. Listening to me read was like nails scratching a chalkboard for Don. He was giving his entire existence to coping with pain. I read the entire book in about three days. This had to be a record for me and is evidence of my wanting to escape from this nightmare I was living.
After taking a percocet, which he did every 3 1/2 hours, he could find about an hour that he could sleep. He certainly did not want to "visit" or listen blissfully to a reading. Other than a toothache, this man had never experienced anything close to this in his life before. I have never felt so helpless as I watched my sweetheart in this condition hour after hour, day after day.
After a day, maybe two, I walked the mile or so back to our apartment for a shower. I did this twice that I can remember. Once, there was no hot water and I had to shower in cold water. I picked up our camera and laptop. A time or two I stopped by the church office building to connect with the Internet so I could communicate with our children who were desperate for some information about their dad.
Don had been given a cell phone by the mission. The senior couples were good to call for updates. But I felt totally alone.
The Lord knew we needed to be reassured that He was aware of us.
Here’s where my intended story begins: We loved the other senior couples we met in the MTC. After eight days in training together, we felt bonded with Elder and Sister Lucas from Utah on their way to Paraguay. We met them first in the MTC. In addition to the Preach My Gospel training, we had special training with the Lucases for the Perpetual Education Fund. Our friendship was instantaneous.
Nearing the end of Don's stay in the hospital in Mongolia we received an email from Sister Lucas who was in Argentina but bound for Paraguay where they’d set up the PEF program there. She had heard about our plight in the Dallas airport! We have never lived in Dallas and don’t know anyone who lives in Dallas. While waiting for her flight back to South America, Sister Lucas was approached by an LDS couple who recognized her missionary name badge. As they visited Sister Lucas discovered that this was my sister-in-law, Carol! This was no chance meeting. The Lord put Sister Lucas and my sister-in-law together in the Dallas airport for me.
She wrote how sorry to she was to hear about our situation and then went on to tell us what had been going on with them. Because she is an RN, the mission president asked her to accompany a very sick elder back to Salt Lake City. She left Elder Lucas in South America and flew back to the States with the sick elder. While in Salt Lake City their son who lived in Salt Lake had a severe heart attack. Sister Lucas just happened to be there to help out with the grandchildren and support her son and daughter-in-law. She returned to her mission after a couple of weeks. It was on her trip back from Salt Lake that she met my sister-in-law in the airport.
She no sooner got back than her husband received a phone call that his father had passed away. So Elder Lucas had to return to the States to help his mother and settle things there. I am glad to report that Elder and Sister Lucas are still in Paraguay setting up the Perpetual Education Fund there among the Latter-day Saints and fulfilling their missionary duties.
When I heard from Sister Lucas about how she’d gotten word about us and about their own set of trials and tragedies, I knew the Lord had moved and managed Sister Lucas and my sister-in-law so precisely to let me know He was aware of Don and me. It brought me great peace and comfort. Knowing that others were enduring trials seemed to validate mine. How miraculous this seemed to me. As time passes, I feel the miracle of this even more. I know that we are personally known by our Heavenly Father. He knows our names and he knows how to succor us - to run to us when we are about to fall, to sustain us in or hour of need. I will treasure this experience for the rest of my life.
