I've noticed sometimes life sends you a reality check. For me it usually comes when I'm feeling sorry for myself, worried about something stupid or arguing about something meaningless. The best thing about the reality check is it can put you back on track. The reality check can clear out the garbage and help you see what's important in life. Sometimes the reality check is a little nudge and sometimes it's a big kick in the pants.
My wife gave birth to our third son just a couple weeks ago. We were thrilled because after two healthy boys we really wanted a third. We'd not found out what we were having and looked forward to the "it's a boy" or "it's a girl" moment. That special moment was quickly tempered when we learned our son was born with respiratory issues. After working for hours to get our son's breathing stable doctors told us he would have to be sent by life flight to a neonatal intensive care unit. This was not part of the "birthing plan!"
In a matter of seconds one of the best nights of my life quickly turned into the worst night of my life. It was all we could take seeing our little boy hooked up to machines ready to be transferred to another hospital. He was working so hard to get air inside those little lungs I worried he would run out of gas, it was awful.
Fast forward two weeks and he's still in the NICU but doing really well. It's been hard on our family spending time with our baby yet still making time for our two boys at home. The boys are so excited to meet their little brother and we're excited to have our family complete.
The back and forth to the hospital is not fun and the emptiness of not having our son at home is tough to take yet I am a blessed man. My wife is the strongest person I know, my boys are happy and healthy and remarkably I've thought of little else the past two weeks beyond my family. I know our little man will be home soon and I can't wait to have our 3 boys together laughing, crying and playing under one roof. I've always said my family is the most important thing in my life and now that's been taken to a new level.
I don't claim to have it all figured out. I know there will be a day down the road when I'm upset about something that really doesn't deserve my energy. I'm thankful for the reality check and I'm thankful my son will come home healthy.
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