It would be remiss of me not to express the various forays of emotions that come with every May 16. I am writing today, because I did not want tomorrow to pass without thanking God for sparing my brother's life. Just about everyone who knows me knows that Joshua was in a severe car accident six years ago. Through that accident he suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that catapulted my family into a whole new world of grief, fear and some realistic conversations with God.
Despite the hard core evidence doctors produced to explain to us that Josh would not live or at the very best would barely be able to function on his own, God has his own ideas. Joshua did live and not only that he regained everything the doctors said he would surely lose.
There are million things I could write about when I journey back to May 16, 2004 like the amazing staff at Sunnyview Rehab Center in Schenectady, the powerful prayer support that pumped in from around the world or the brilliance of God defying some of the most intelligent doctors in their field of expertise.
However, Josh is extraordinary... recently Michael J. Fox did a special that was titled "The Journey of Incurable Optimist" and two people immediately came to mind...one of which was my brother. If he ever has been discouraged he has masked that discouragement with thanking God, working hard and laughing at the incredible odds set before him.
In the years that have followed, personally the word that has grown in meaning to me has been perspective. And, I have learned to answer some hard questions such as "Would you still thank God if Joshua had died?"
That's been one my family and I have discussed and to use one of my dad's hick phrases "hard-sayin', not knowin'. " It is hard to say what would have emerged out of the inner core of faith and gut wrenching grief, but I pray that in the end, yes I would still be able to thank God for the family I had. In no way do I know this, but the alternative to not keeping my faith alive in God seems a lot darker. Would I have spent my entire life being Angry? Sad? Depressed? I think those emotions would have raged for a time, but keeping faith in God is what's real despite circumstances right? So, its still a tough question and its one I am glad I did not have to go through the experience to answer. So yes, I praise the Lord that my brother is alive, working in his complicated computer field, getting married and moving on with life.
Additionally, we were able to write the book, (thus the poster )which gave Joshua the ability to look back on a year of his life that the rest of us remember better than he does. It gives us a chance to realize how far we as a family have come since then. We have all been blessed with a new perspective, a new compassion for people, less judgement and a God-given renewed vigor for each new day :)