All Is Well

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

Merry Christmas!  We are doing well, and I hope you all are too.

First, a status update – basically, all treatment is done(yea!), and we are just doing the things to get me put back together.  I completed radiation the first week in December.  It went very well.  I was a bit tired at the end and had to take an afternoon nap for a few days, but I did not really mind that.  My skin got quite burned and blistered in a few places.  It was not very painful, maybe all my teen years of getting burned at the pool and beach trying to maintain the perfect tan numbed me.  My skin is now almost completely healed. 

I had my port removed two weeks ago.  That surgery was uneventful.  It was almost enjoyable thanks to the drugs they gave me.  The stitched-up area is also healing up nicely.  I have to say I am slowly being pieced back together and the scars of the past year are fading.  I still have PT twice a week for something called cording under my right arm where they removed the lymph nodes.  PT involves quite a bit of stretching the area out and is painful, but it is helping and the two therapists working on me are great.  They are hopeful the cording will resolve itself soon.   I have a break from doctors and hospitals for a little while until reconstruction in February or March.  For now, I am enjoying just being able to stay home every day.  

Now, on to normal life.  I LOVE the Christmas season.  What is not to love?  There is so much good food, so many parties with friends, wonderful music, concerts and plays.  Not to mention you can wear so much sparkly jewelry, clothes, and shoes.  And don’t forget all the Christmas themed clothes.  I even have a Christmas purse from Disney that Chris gave me one year for Christmas.  

I love the decorations – the more the merrier!  This year we decorated 4 big trees and each child had a small tree in their room.  I love pulling out decorations from years past and reminiscing on where they came from and who gave them to me.  A friend described her family tree as a giant charm bracelet full of memories from past years.  When we go on vacation, we buy an ornament as a reminder of the trip.  Each year at the beach we go to the Christmas Mouse store and the kids pick out an ornament.  It is always fun to look back on what they have chosen and remember that time in all of our lives.  

This year is different though. As we were excitedly decorating the new house there was a sadness as well.   We did not have any family vacation ornaments to put on the tree.   We went to the beach but did not venture out to any stores, so there were no ornaments the kids picked out.  The dining room could not be fully decorated because the table is being used as a school desk.  The Christmas platters I pull out for the various parties we have ever year would remain empty.  There was no need for a new Christmas clothes since there were no Christmas Concerts.  No new sparkly top needed for me as I direct the preschool classes during the Christmas Performance. No last-minute trip to the store to get black pants for the band concert because the boys grew 3 inches since the Spring Concert.  No White Elephant gifts to wrap or cookies to exchange.   No trips to the Mall, just lots and lots of Amazon boxes!  The Christmas season has certainly been different this year.

We have made the most of our time together.  We pick a different Christmas movie every night and watch it together – something we don’t usually have time to do.  We have baked and taken treats to neighbors and friends.  We never take the time to do this and it has been a lot of fun.  We have listened to a lot of Christmas music.  We even had time to make gingerbread houses from scratch, decorate them, and post on Facebook for votes.    With all of the fun we are creating there is still an air of sadness in our home.  We miss the business of the Christmas season.  We miss friends and family and the joy being with them brings us.  We also miss the concerts of the season.  I miss singing with my preschool students, I miss being in our Church’s Living Christmas Tree performances.  I miss seeing my own children play their instruments and sing.  Music is a big part of my worship.  Singing and listening to the songs of the season and songs about the birth of Jesus bring me closer to God and the miracle that took place at Christmas.

On Sunday we had the opportunity to attend (with masks, socially distanced, and temperature checks) a Keyboards and Carols concert at our church.  It was beautiful!  They did a prerecorded virtual song with the children singing from their homes.  I cried through the whole song, missing seeing those sweet faces in person.  There was a virtual Choir and Orchestra song done the same way, and I cried seeing those faces and seeing the joy they had getting to play and sing again.  The best part of the concert was a beautiful duet of All is Well by Michael W. Smith.  

All is well all is well
Angels and men rejoice
For tonight darkness fell
Into the dawn of love’s light

All is well all is well
Let there be peace on earth
Christ’s come go and tell
That He is in the manger

All is well all is well
Lift up your voices and sing
Born is now Emmanuel
Born is our Lord and Savior
Sing Alleluia
Sing Alleluia
All is well

So, this Christmas season when things are not going the way we want and remember from past years, I am reminding myself – All is Well – because our Lord and Savior was born to save us.  All is Well – because all we need is Jesus!  I hope you can find peace this Christmas knowing that All is Well because of the baby born in the manger.  

Merry Christmas!