Despite our best efforts we have been sick here in our house. Jenna had it first – 5 days of fever finished up with a couple days of runny nose. Jacob had 2 days of fever followed by 10 days of intense, spasmodic coughing. I am finally able to swallow again after strep.
To say I was frustrated would be putting it mildly. We have worked so hard to be healthy and look after ourselves, and just like that we were brought to our knees by these viruses. With our trip home looming just ahead of us it was getting more and more urgent that we all get healthy and stay that way.
Jenna recovered a couple of weeks ago and has been totally fine since (thank goodness). I knew that my throat would run its course and I’d be fine.
What was causing me concern was Jacob and his cough. It was the same nasty cough he had last spring that lasted for 3 weeks. Harsh, deep, dry coughs that were relentless. Non stop, all day and night with no relief.
We tried everything. Every Ayurvedic medicine I could get my hands on, all my essential oils, all the western medicine the doctor suggested. Nothing was giving him any relief. He lay in bed coughing and coughing and coughing.
Finally last night I broke down. I was so frustrated, upset, annoyed that nothing we were doing was working. I knew with the way he was coughing that there was no way we would be able to travel. Against my better judgement, in my frustration, I told him that there were only a few more days left and with him not getting better there was a good chance we would not be able to go. I was just so frustrated and upset and I didn’t want him to find out the day of travel that we would not be going.
Of course as soon as I said it I wished I could cram it back in my mouth. But the three of us sat there and cried for a little bit and then they went to their rooms to get ready for bed.
I sat on my bed and thought about what had just happened. Then I thought about the work I’d been doing with my positive intentions. About how I was learning that nothing on the outside of my life will work properly unless I’m properly balanced and aligned on the inside. About how all the work and action that I *do* don’t matter unless I’m coming from a place of peace and balance on the inside.
I realized that we all had been *doing* things to try and get Jacob better. But one thing we hadn’t done was set our intention inside ourselves that he be healthy. The kids know this setting of intention as prayer.
We got back together and I told them that we were the strongest, most stubborn, most willful people I knew and that we were going to use all those traits to look deep inside ourselves and find feelings of love and health and peace for Jacob. We sat there and prayed and put in our hearts that he was just going to be better.
When I went in to tuck him in he wasn’t coughing – when I asked him why, he said because every time he wanted to cough he thought of healthy thoughts and of all the fun he was going to have at home and he stuffed the cough away.
Well, he woke up this morning and was healthy. No coughing. He went from spasmodic coughing that was relentless yesterday to no coughing and going to school today.
A Christmas Miracle. Brought on by our positive intentions (prayers), fueled by a little frustration meltdown.
