Special words from Christian's doctor

A couple weeks ago, I visited the hospital where Christian had two major surgeries, treatment after treatment, and appointment after appointment. I never wanted to walk through those doors again, and thankfully, the appointment was in a meeting room barely inside the hospital doors. I just wasn't ready to walk down the same hallways and sit in the same waiting rooms we had before...but together. His amazing oncologist offered to meet with the family to discuss Christian's battle. Christian's parents were there too. What he said was profound! But it didn't pertain so much to Christian's prognosis and physical battle. It had everything to do with his spiritual battle. Now, I'm not going to get this as eloquently as he said it, but it was along the lines of...

"Christian's soul reflected the image of God, and that explains why people were attracted to him." He commented on the many circles of friends and colleagues Christian had. We agreed and talked about how many seemed to come to him for advice and could confide in him.

His doc also said, "When you're near death you have someone (loved one who has passed) there with you, someone you can see and help you cross that bridge. And there's so much peace."

We very much felt that peace during Christian's last couple days here on earth.

I walked away feeling so much comfort and peace, and even greater admiration towards his doctor. And I know he shared that same admiration towards his patient. As you might guess, Christian was a unique patient. He came fully prepared to every appointment with questions, research, and a course of action. He was so courteous to everyone who he came in contact with. It made me wonder if he would be one of those old men who teased and flirted with nurses, which brought a smile to my face but also made me sad not knowing if he would reach that old age.

Visiting the hospital was a hard thing to do. But God has given me strength to push through the hard things to honor Christian. I think it is a place I will visit again, let's pray not for necessity but on my own terms. I would like to walk those hallways again remembering the time Christian and I spent there together. Sure, these were hard times, but quality time spent together. These memories are still so vivid! I would like to walk those hallways and reflect upon the gratitude I feel for Christian's strong fight, love for his family, and faith. I would like to walk circles around the floor where we stayed for one week while he was recovering from the first surgery, with reflections of thankfulness for the abundance of support from family, friends, and community.