Great Day, Good Leg

My father was discharged from the hospital yesterday. It was a great day, because he came home with both his legs intact. Praise be to God.

My father had the surgery on his heels Friday of last week. It took us a few days to decide which doctor to choose. I felt that we needed a second opinion and consult other doctors because the first Orthopedic surgeon had a negative attitude -- I mean, I know doctors are supposed to explain to us the worst situation that could happen -- but this one just scared my father and I. He was just too unfeeling about our situation.

So after a tiring process of going from one doctor to the other, and with lots of prayers, I decided to go with the Orthopedic surgeon who did my mother's hip surgery 3 years ago, and who also is a good friend of my cousin. This doctor is not only reputable, but he is also calm and encouraging. The best thing he said was that he will try his best to avoid amputation. It's not a promise, but at least I know he'll try. That's just what I want.

The procedure that my father had was called debridement, a process of removing the pus and all the necrotic tissues in the infected area to improve the chances of the good tissues to heal. The doctor did a culture on my dad's tissue to find out the kind of bacteria that thrived on his heels. Apparently there were at least two kinds, and the other one being pretty resistant. I didn't cacth the names of the bacterias but I'm sure they ended with "-coccus" or "-cocci". :o)

After the operation, my father was pumped with intravenous anti-biotics for 7 days. The doctor's goal is to kill the bacteria of course, and to make sure that the wound stays red and not turn dark. If the wound stays red, then my father's chances of healing is good. Otherwise.... you know the worst case scenario.

But God is good. My father responded to the anti-biotics well and the wound looks red and bleeding (which in this case is a good sign). The anti-biotics though cost $100 per day, on top of all his regular meds which is about 14 different kinds. Whew! Pretty expensive. But then again, nothing is too expensive for my father's legs and life.

As for me, I think I've come to a point where I've learned to let go and not worry too much. I know what I see but most importantly, I know what God can do. It is difficult, especially when you see your father very sad (still mourning my mother's death) and your finances getting limited each day (and you don't know what you'd do when nothing's left). But I have decided to rest on the Lord and not let my emotion affect my faith in God. I am in a state of peace - not perfect yet, but getting there. He is in control, so hard as it may be, "I" am trying to step aside. I don't want to get in the way with what He wants to do in our life.

To all those who remembered to pray for us and my father, thank you once again. May God bless you as you continue to remain available for God's use.