Cori and I took Zion to Hershey Medical Center today for her yearly Spina Bifida clinic to see how she is growing and developing. It involves a lot of energy, expense and effort to load two kids into the vehicle before the break of dawn on a cold October morning each year, but this year we were happy to make the effort...
You see, last year was a very different experience for us. Cori and I did our usual thing, dressing the kids warmly and eating on the run. We arrived early. We waited indefinitely and became...impatient. After four hours, crammed into a tiny doctor's office with a then 3-year old and 7-year old, we were angry, frustrated and begging for an end to the seemingly endless parade of specialists and doctors, surgeons and nurses coming in the door only to say, "she seems to be developing like a normal child."
I would like to say that I accepted the news gratefully, but the truth is, I remember saying something like, "Then why are we here, wasting our day?" As the clinic came to a close and the last doctor left saying "she's practically perfect," I remember mumbling, "It's about time," as we headed quickly for the door.
Standing in line to settle our bill, a stranger interrupted our space from behind us with a question. "Does she have Spina Bifida?" he said, gesturing incredulously toward little Zion who was twirling and dervishing in her own little dance world. "Yes," Cori said.
The stranger who interrupted our day then went on to tell us that he was a grandfather to a child that had undergone several surgeries before her first birthday to reverse the effects of Spina Bifida. He also told us that she was due for yet another surgery in the next month and that the prospects weren't good for his little grand daughter to EVER have a normal life.
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In that moment, a Godly sorrow settled on us like none we have ever known. We decided then and there that we would NEVER begrudge the chance to hear that our daughter was perfect ever again. God had performed a miracle for us that allowed Zion to develop like any other little girl and we weren't going to take that for granted EVER again.
So today we piled in the car thanking God for the big miracle He provided for our little blessing. Another year has come and gone and she is still undeniably "perfect."
