Thankful for Ken - Part 2

  So many people commented on my last blog!  I am so thankful for each person that reads these blogs.  As I stated in that post, I am really sharing a few of Ken's stories so that my kids and grands have a bit of a written history of some stories about Ken.  In the last blog I talked about how Ken became part of his adopted family.    Somewhere around 18 months, Ken started to have seizures.  And these were not just seizures.  He would actually stop breathing and would require oxygen and "help" to resume breathing. It wasn't exactly easy for his parents, and I can really relate to just how difficult it is to have a toddler with medical issues! Again, remember that I don't have any actual knowledge of this medical issue.  I am only relating the things I was told.  This first picture is significant because it was the day of his last ever seizure..... and Ken remembered it.  

During those early years, Ken's mom told me that she was afraid to go anywhere with Ken.  They really didn't know what was going on medically and he was taken to Columbus and Cleveland to different doctors and hospitals.  They had oxygen tanks at home and always brought them with when leaving the house.  It was a very stressful time for them, for sure.  After that last seizure he was put on Dilantin, a powerful anti-seizure medication and it eliminated his seizures.  He remained on several medications all through out his childhood.  He made the decision to go off of his medications at the age of 18 and he never had another seizure.

During this period of his childhood, his family lived in several houses in Wadsworth, Ohio.  He had wonderful memories of the various homes.  He remembered that they had birds as pets and they would often be in these windows.  

 In spite of the unknown sickness' Ken had a pretty normal childhood. He did struggle in school and as an adult, realized that he had dyslexia.  He came up with some pretty creative ways to be able to read and understand.  Small town life was good in the 50's and he talked of riding his bike all over Wadsworth.   Wadsworth was home until Ken was in 5th grade when the family moved to Pittsburg.  One of our favorite vacations was a visit back to Wadsworth.  We found all of his childhood homes, the schools and we visited this park.  He remembered spending so much time here! 

One of the hardest things for Ken, when Doug was sick as a baby, was not knowing his own health history.  There was always a niggling feeling that there might be some "inherited" reason for Doug's kidney and immune issues as a baby, toddler, preschooler.  Although Doug did not have a seizure issue, we never really knew if there was some connection to Ken's early health issues.  

Also, revolving around this health issue, was that Ken was rejected by the military!  After high school, Ken tried to enlist in the navy (think July 1971).  Yes, this was during Vietnam when so many were "draft dodging".  Ken felt totally healthy and so wanted to follow his dad's footsteps into the Navy. (His dad served in WWII).  He had numerous tests at that time to try to prove that he had no residual issues from that childhood seizure disorder, but the Navy still refused to let him enlist. That 4F draft card was really awful for Ken.  Getting that rejection was one of the pivotal things that followed Ken into his adulthood.   It was also terribly hard for Ken when we had to make the decision to have one of Doug's kidneys removed.  I remember he lamented for days that having one kidney would always make Doug not eligible for military service.  Truthfully,  this never entered my mind, since Doug being healthy was my end goal.  Ken didn't talk about this at all in the later years.  But I know that he always experienced a bit of regret and longing on Veterans Day and Fourth of July.  

Doing these blogs has reminded me just how important it is to keep your personal stories available for that time when you are no longer able to share them!  I think that heading into 2021 I will be starting a series of my own "growing up" stories!  And this is gentle reminder to all of you, that there is so much that you should be sharing with your family!  If this gets just one person to write down (journal) their own stories so that they are not lost to future generations, then I have accomplished something important through these blogs.   

Jesus, thank you for this opportunity to share a bit of Ken's life.  Holy Spirit, help us all to remember the importance of sharing our own history.  Jesus, I am especially grateful for the Bible - a collection of stories that reveal exactly who you are.  Holy Spirit, keep us mindful for your presence with us as we recall our own history.  Thank you Jesus for loving us!  Amen