I knew something was was wrong as soon as he walked in the door. He came in to the house too quickly. Anyone who knows Scott, knows he moves at his own pace. It takes him a lot longer to do most things, than a regular person. So when he walked in the door seconds after the garage went up, I knew something was wrong. "Babe, I have bad news. Your dad collapsed and is in the hospital on a respirator."
I panicked..."what do you mean? I don't understand what that means." We called my family. Seth, my brother keeps telling that he will pull through this. He's strong. And then I talked to my mom and found out how bad it really was. "Brooke, your daddy is critical. They don't think he will live through the night." They gave him at best 10% chance. He had already coded twice, once for 5 minutes, and the second time in surgery for 15 minutes.
I was HYSTERICAL. I said, "we have to go NOW". And then I remembered that I was in my 40th week of pregnancy.
The decision: Do I go home and risk the baby in the process? Or do I stay and miss what we thought at the time was goodbye to my dad?
We called my doctor who said I would go into labor if we made the drive, but she understood under the circumstance. Mom wanted me to stay right where I was. I knew she was worried about me and the baby on top of everything happening with my dad. So, Scott and I went for a walk. He told me that it had to be my decision and he would support whatever it was. I should mention, we knew of some complications with Dylan before he was born so there were special things that had to be done during the delivery. The thought of going into labor between here and Gastonia was a little scary. In the meantime, my best friend, Erin, cancelled a flight back to NYC and drove from Gastonia to be with me. My in laws also dropped everything to come and be with us. So, for the moment, I stayed put.
That night, we slept on and off waiting for the phone to ring. But it didn't...He made it through the night against all odds. The day before they had lowered his body temperature (freezing him) and put him in a medically induced coma where he stayed for a couple days.
In the end, I decided to not put Dylan at risk and stay in Raleigh. I had my last conversation with my dad a couple days before all this happened and he told me that he couldn't wait for me to be a parent. That there was no way to describe how special that love is. I knew in my heart, that if he had a say, he would want me to stay in Raleigh.
His chances improved each day. They decided to induce me the next day and Friday morning, 2 days after Dad got sick, we were on our way out the door to go to the hospital, when we got the phone call we had been waiting for. Dad had brought himself out of the medically induced coma and was asking for my mom. It wasn't an easy recovery for him but he did it.
We still don't know what happened to him. He collapsed and his entire body was shutting down. His doctors called him the "Miracle Man" because they can't explain it either. There is no rational reason that he is still here. I like to think it is all the prayers that he got. Dylan was born 3 days after all of this happened, and when he was 4 days old, he had his first road trip to Gastonia to meet his Nana and Pops. They wheeled my dad outside the hospital so he could meet his grandson.
To my friends that called during those first couple days. Even though I didn't actually speak to you, I knew you were there for anything I needed, and that meant the world to me. I am so lucky to have the friends that I do.
To Marie and Bert, my mother and father in law, thank you for dropping everything to come and be with us. But most importantly to me, thank you for stopping in Gastonia to sit with my Dad and remind him of everything he had to live for. I love you guys so much.
To my brother, who never left dad's side. You showed incredible strength those days. Thank you for being enough for both of us. I love you!
To my mom, you are the strongest person I know. PERIOD. You have been through so much and I have learned so much from you. Family is the most important thing to you and you would do anything for any of us. I love you!
To Erin, my forever friend, and sister of my heart. It meant everything that you were here when Dylan was born to represent my family. You are always there when I need you most and I love you so much.
To Scott, you are my best friend. Thank you for trusting me to make the best decision for me and Dylan. And thank you for getting me through those hard times. I know breaking that news to me wasn't easy, and it is something both of us will never forget. I am so lucky to have you. I love you so much!
And lastly, to my dad...You have the strongest will to live of anyone and I hope you always appreciate life. That experience taught me never to take anything for granted. I love you and I am so glad that you are still with us!
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That was beautiful Brooke. I would like to thank one more person....DYLAN. If your mom did not have to go home to change clothes so she would have a pocket to put her cell phone in so she could be ready when you called to tell her she was in labor...well, I don't know if your dad would be with us today. Dylan was a saviour before he was even born. I will never forget that....grandma marie
ReplyDeleteTo be there for Dylan's birth was something I'll cherish forever. And to be with you in during that tough time... well, I could not have been anywhere else. I love you too.
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