The Power of Words

Life's been a bit crazy lately. This past week has been especially difficult in the Schweitzer household. Last weekend we were in Decatur. There is so much going on with our families that it never seems to be the relaxing time that it used to be. We did get to have both of our families for dinner together Sunday after church, so that was nice. Even as turmoil swirls around our families, the stability and solid foundation we have always had in our parents has stayed strong. We both have such admirable parents. I hope that we can be even half as wonderful as parents as they have been.
We ended up staying in Decatur until Monday morning, then I dropped Ward off at work on my way home. Fairly early in the afternoon, he called to say that he thought he was sick and that he was going to come home early. By Tuesday morning, he had caught whatever it was full force. He called in sick and I tried to work around him and keep Kai occupied while taking care of Ward. He wasn't much better on Wednesday and ended up working from home. That was even more difficult. Trying to get everything done and keep Kai out of his hair. He finally thought he was feeling better Wednesday night, then Kai woke up in the night with a runny nose. The next day Ward went back to work and left me with a sick little boy.
Kai had a runny nose and slight fever on Thursday, then Thursday night he didn't sleep...at all. I was up all night with him. I was exhausted, he was exhausted. His fever just kept going up and up, no matter how much Tylonol I gave him. After two days of not wanting to eat and not sleeping, I took him to the doctor. He had 102.3 degree fever. The doctor said that it would just have to pass, and that I was doing everything right and it should be over soon.
So I went back home Friday afternoon, slightly discouraged because my parents were coming down that night for Boeing's family day on Saturday. If Kai was still running a fever, he couldn't go. I was disappointed. So Kai and I spent the evening dancing by candlelight to Norah Jones in the great room. Daddy joined us for a few dances until Kai get real sleepy. He stayed awake long enough to see Mamaw and Papa, then went to bed. My parents offered to get up with him since we hadn't had any sleep, but he ended up sleeping until after 7! It was wonderful. He got up, ate and went back to bed for a few hours. And the best part, was that his fever had broken! He was acting more like himself, eating and getting into everything.
We spent all day yesterday at Boeing, touring assembly lines and seeing the bomb facility. It had been three years since I had been, so it was exciting to see all the advances. Especially the bomb facility, I hadn't been there before, it was amazing. My dad afterward said that it was very sobering to think that Ward worked there. People just think he has an easy desk job, but it's a fairly precarious position to be in. I think it really sank in to them the seriousness of it all when Ward said it was one of the reasons he'd moved his family outside the "blast zone".
You just don't think about those sorts of things happening. But they could. People wonder why we pay so much attention to politics and world news and why we care so much...they just don't understand. Military families understand. But most of the rest of America has no clue. They don't understand the risks involved. Once again, I was so proud walking through those buildings of my husband and everything he does to protect those brave men and women who defend our nation.
When the day was over (after a brief visit to babies r us and cabelas) we were all tired. We ate at Red Robin then headed home. Just before we got ready for bed I told them that I was starting to not feel very well. Sure enough, I was up in the night...and by this morning I had a fever over 100 degrees and was sick as could be. It was miserable. I feel somewhat better now, just have to keep pumping in the medicine as often as possible. I don't have time to be sick. I have way too much to do this week and my in-laws and niece and nephew will be here Friday. So much to do. So the week was fairly stressful, but I did get to feel a sense of accomplishment. Time and time again recently I've been faced with tough situations and time and time again, I've discovered that I'm stronger than I thought I was.
My husband told me the other day that he has no idea how I do it. He just doesn't know how I keep everything running so smoothly. I told him that I didn't think I did all that great of a job and he laughed at me and said I was a ridiculous perfectionist. haha. That may be true. I do try so hard to do the very best that I can for my family. I know that it would be acceptable for me to not accomplish much, for our house to be a wreck, for us to eat carry out every night. I don't think my husband would complain at all after seeing how hard Kai is to keep up with, and all the other responsiblities I have. But I can't live that way. I want a clean, organized house. I want to know my baby is eating the best stuff possible. I want to know that there's good food in the refrigerator and my husband has something good to come home to at night. It's a lot of work and sometimes the task seems overwhelming, but there are moments that make it completely worth it.
Like when Ward comes home and raves about something I cooked and how he can't wait to have the leftovers tomorrow. Or when he talks about the guys at the office going on and on about how they can't believe his wife would send a pie to work that was still warm from the oven since she baked it that morning. Or to overhear someone say that they think I'm a wonderful mother, even if it doesn't always feel like it to me. Or to have a new doctor that I've never met come in and say, "wait...you just had a baby 10 months ago??? no way! you're in great shape!" Or to have my mom (the ultimate cleaning perfectionist) come into my house this weekend and say "How on earth is your house so clean when you have a sick baby!"
It's amazing the way our words hold so much power. The way a single encouraging comment like that can make everything worthwhile. We've felt the same feeling in our organization lately. We've been swamped making blankets and trying desperately to complete this cookbook. Sometimes it seems like it's just too much. Then there's the precious couple at the cancer center who talk about how much they love the blanket they got and how they use it all the time...and how their grandkids love it so much that they'll turn the fans on when it's hot so they can use it. Or the thank-you notes from people who've been given less than a year to live, but want to help make more blankets because theirs means so much to them. And then you realize that what you're doing is making a difference. That it is important. That it's worth doing.
Words may not seem like much but they can give us the strength we need to keep on keeping on. In fact, words (especially Scripture) are at times all that can keep us holding on.