Footprints

(Original appeared May 6, 2016)

This entry could go in several different directions with a title such as “Footprints”. You may be familiar with the famous poem about how God not only walks with us in life, but during the tough times actually carries us through.
Rather than get all mushy gushy with you, I’d like to present to you the photo here which shows Jacob’s foot prints placed upon his baptismal banner. Now, Deb and i consider this banner to be something just shy of sacred, especially under the circumstances of Jacob’s early days. This banner is lovingly and painstaking made by a member or members of our church for each and every individual baptized there. The banner Addison received on her baptismal birthday hangs in her room to this day. So, we hesitated doing anything that might soil Jacob’s banner in any way. Since the day it was given to us, we hung it in our room as a reminder that while we cannot be with him at the hospital 24/7, he is still in our hearts.
Today, the nurse contacted Deb and informed her of the good news that we’d get to take Jacob’s foot prints and asked if we had something special to put them on. Sure, a card or paper would work. But we wanted something of good solid material and something lasting – a reminder of where he’s been and where he’s going. Boom: baptismal banner. So while this is quite unconventional, the fact that Jacob has completely bucked “convention” his whole life just seemed to fit the situation. I will add that each of the letters on the banner are no more than 2 inches long so that may help give you perspective of how tiny his feet still are.

Update: Jacob’s chest x-rays have been very cloudy recently, indicating inflammation, congestion, or scaring. Yet, his O2 levels have been getting better. It’s almost comical now to see how test after test suggests one thing, but the reality presents something opposite, good or bad. So, we just roll with it and continue to fully rely on God and His plan.