A Mother's Love.

Imagine holding your baby boy in your arms the day he is born into the world. You promise him that you can and will do everything you can to ensure his well-being. He is everything to you, your whole world, and you finally know what it feels like to hold your whole heart in your hands.

Imagine watching him grow, his imagination running wild as a toddler, then into his adolescent years, which may not be so nice, but they are still full of unconditional love and hope. You make memories, you share traditions and even tears. You watch as he becomes a man and you are so proud when he brings his own children into the world. You thank God everyday for such a wonderful blessing. Such a selfless kind of love you have experienced.

Then one day, everything changes. He is working and is injured severely on the job. You get the phone call, he's in the hospital with a skull fracture and a broken arm. You pray on your way to the hospital, "Please God, be with my son."

He recovers and you go on about life and then come the complications. He has to be brought back in for another surgery to fix an infection. His condition is deteriorating and you have to watch him slowly slip away. He can no longer talk with you, he can hear what you are saying, but there is no response. You've made memories, shared traditions and now you have tears. Tears of sorrow and sadness. But in the midst of your heartache you find hope. You read to him from the Bible every day. You come alive when he wiggles his toes and lifts his finger ever so slightly. You have hope.

This has been my experience over the last two days in clinical. I have watched a mother tend to her child, her precious baby boy, as he slips away. His condition deteriorating. He is completely unresponsive but she still has hope. She still prays and reads to him from the Bible every morning at his bedside. She never leaves. She's a mother. There's nothing like a mother's love, it's unconditional and full of hope.