By David Freeze
Life has been wonderful for me the last few years. I have often heard others say things like, “You are just living a dream!” While spending long hours on a bicycle traveling for days at a time might seem like a lot of work to most people, I value the ability do so as a tremendous blessing.
Isn’t life most rewarding when we have lots of “Wow” moments and realize that the circumstances that put us in the right place to experience those moments are blessings? One of those “Wow” moments happened for me on Sunday, October 28, at about noon. It had nothing to do with a bicycle.
My daughter, Amber, and her husband, Jamie, had been expecting their first baby. Conceiving the pregnancy had required the invitro process and a wait to see if the harvested eggs would be acceptable. They were, but Amber’s various health problems along the way kept the pregnancy in doubt.
Doctors and parents picked the date of October 29th for a scheduled C-section. The pregnancy was considered a geriatric pregnancy since Amber is past 35, a term that makes her sound old. Usually she is the liveliest and most upbeat person in a room, but the pregnancy worried her. It worried the rest of the family too, but I have found that the power of prayer was so dramatic that I had to ask for God’s help on this. Each and every night, I asked for His care and peace as the time for the birth approached.
On Saturday evening, I had just returned to the house from some farm work. Amber called and I thought upon seeing her name that this was very unusual timing and immediately wondered if everything was alright. She and Jamie had become concerned with various things during the day and the doctor asked them to come to the hospital. The surgery and birth were going to happen between 10pm and 1am that evening.
Amber’s mother and sister, along with their husbands, were on the way to the hospital, so I elected to wait until Sunday to visit. With Amber’s blessing, I hoped to see the new family and my first grandchild after everyone else had gone home.
After church, the short drive to Presbyterian Hospital, and a longer search for the right place to park, I finally found the correct building and floor. A short stop at security for a visitor badge didn’t take long, just ahead of getting directions at the nurses’ station.
I walked into room 822, and within one minute was holding my new granddaughter. Her name is Monroe James Bishop and she seemed just about perfect. Time didn’t matter and all seemed just as it should be. Both parents were sleep deprived and overwhelmed but were doing great. And so was Monroe, although she slept most of the time. I did so those bright blue eyes a few times, just the same as her granddad’s.
I’ve been blessed with the most precious gift. One of these days, I will tell her about how prayer matters and share some memories. But for now, I’ll just work to be the best example of a good dad and granddad. I truly believe that is what God wants and deserves. So today, I ask for your prayers that help me do this. Thank you, God, for this new baby and every blessing you provide!
