July 30: Yesterday, Near Death Experiences, A Hero

I had every intention of posting yesterday.  However, in the afternoon, when I was done cleaning my house, I sat down, feeling quite tired.  I had been running errands all day long, so I thought it was a normal kind of exhaustion.  I didn't even think to test my blood sugar.  One of my daughter's friends was with me.  He helped me sweep and Swiffer my floors.  He's a really good kid, with a good sense of humor and a good heart.

Well, I felt myself drifting off as we sat watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.  The next thing I remember is being on the kitchen floor with paramedics working on me.  It seems that my tiredness was the result of an extremely low blood sugar.  My daughter's friend, let's call him Hero, tried to help me, but when I fell on the way to the kitchen, he went running to the neighbor's house.  The neighbor is a nursing student whose father is an insulin-pump diabetic, as well.  She knew exactly what to do.

This movie's funny, even if you're dying!

Of course, the rest of the day, after the paramedics left, is a thundering headache.  Me feeling like I'm pushing through mud.  And, also, a lot of reflection.

This is the second close call I've had in the last couple months.  I've never seen a bright light.  I've never seen my dead grandma.  (Even if I did, she probably wouldn't talk to me.  She pretty much thought I was a "sassy snot," which was the worst insult she gave to her grandchildren.)  But when I finally opened my eyes, there was my daughter's worried face.  It broke my heart.  (Of course, that spell quickly dissipated when she whispered in my ear, "Daddy, can I have a puppy?")  If Hero hadn't been with me, I would have been alone with my two-year-old son, and my son could have been harmed, as well.

God gave me another chance yesterday, and I'm not going to screw it up.  Actually, God's given me two chances in the last few months, and I don't want to try for a third.  I always find myself afraid to go to sleep after these eipsodes.  Last night, I didn't fall asleep until well after midnight, and I tested my blood sugar about four times before I did.

Today, I give thanks for Hero.  I give thanks for second chances.  I give thanks for the life I have, regardless of how much I bitch about it sometimes.

Saint Marty is a really blessed person.