Sixth "Scent"

This morning, I had the privilege of spending some extra time with Ansley before school. She woke up so sleepy, and just wanted to "be still" and lay in her bed. Those of you that know Ansley, know this is very rare! She usually jumps out of bed and is charged, fully ready to embrace the day. But today, we just sat still together- precious moments!!

We read from a small book my parents recently bought for our family. The question of the day read, "If you had to give up sight, hearing, the ability to speak, or the ability to walk, which would you choose?" WOW! Think about that question. I wrestled with it over and over again. Ansley simply stated, "I would give up my sight, because God gave me a sixth "scent" and I'm always aware of what's going on around me!" I love the words children use to convey their thoughts!! And in her mind, this was a simple question.

Hours later, I still don't know how to answer that question. We talked about it again at the dinner table. John had a very profound thought. He said he would give up speaking, because most of us speak too much anyway. He's so right!! Such wisdom from a teenager!

How could I give up my sight? I write this as I look out at the beautiful fall foliage- this wonderful Creation all around me. How could I give up seeing my children grow older and watching their everyday life play out before my eyes? Yet how could I give up my hearing? There is so much to hear all around me each day! I LOVE music- it fills my soul. I cannot imagine worship without the sound of sweet music to my ears. But what about the ability to speak? I'm full of too many words- that just wouldn't do. And last but not least, the ability to walk? I can only sit today and thank God for my legs, and the ability He has given to me to do all of these things. I cannot live in fear of losing any of these "scents," as Ansley called them. But rather, I am choosing to live with complete gratitude for all that God has given to me today:  my sight,  my hearing, my ability to speak- often, and my ability to walk.

I will be scheduling a brain MRI and a neck/cervical MRI when I receive the order from my ENT doctor. He has been wonderful, and agrees that it will be beneficial to have these tests run before I go for my appointment at Hopkins. I will let you know when I have these scheduled, but it looks like within a week or so, these scans will be out of the way! Thanks for your continued prayers for me.