Beautiful

I recently came across something that was just too beautiful to not share. I hope that the author will not mind that I am adding it to my blog and sharing it with all of you. It's taken from a recent post to an online transplant support group which I am a member of. I hope that it touches your heart as much as it did mine....

"I have to share with you a most wonderful moment. When all is still, in the dark of night, while laying on my left side, I can feel my heart beating. Not every night, just ones that become special. I try not to breathe too deeply, for fear my body will shift and the feeling of the heartbeat will go away. As I lay there, feeling this wonderful sensation, I send a prayer up to my donor, thanking her for her gift of life to me. The greatest feeling in the world is the heartbeat of life it self. Thank you for letting me share this."

After being home for 6 weeks (we've almost past our record...cross your fingers) and enjoying every second of it (even if it involves a "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day"), I have reflected not only on the miracle that have taken place in our lives, but the beauty of this whole experience. I don't have the words to express all of my feelings, or the skill in writing and articulating all of the emotions that continually run through my brain, but the above statement eloquently describes (as they pertain to Beckham) what I have struggled to say for so long.

Once our lives calmed (or calming, since we are not there yet), I found myself once again sitting and holding Beckham with my hand placed on his heart, feeling every perfect, smooth, rhythmic heartbeat. As I do, I'm reminded of what Beck's previous heartbeat felt like before his transplant, (I actually had mistaken his pumping heart for severe chest congestion (like from a patient with horrible pneumonia) until his doctor corrected me and said that it was his heart fighting desperately to live) and I can't believe the difference. It is indescribable....to say the least. What a difference a perfect heart makes.

The only words I can add to the above authors is my own, in that this heart is at home in Beckham. We love this heart and we are taking care of it, for it is what gives our son life. A wonderful happy life. Here's the proof:

Quick update:
Beck is slowly being weened off of the steroids (hallelujah) and should be finished with them at the end of July. We have sure noticed a huge change in his behavior since we started the steroid taper, and are loving it! Beck's appetite has still not decreased, and the proof is that he weighed in at 33.5 lbs this week (10 lbs gain since we left the hospital). He is now in the 98th percent of weight for his age (he is usually in the 3rd). He really is a chunk...but a cute chunk.

We will not know the status of his levels until next week when we have our appointment in Iowa City. We are sure praying that they have continued to move in the right direction. Until them we hope that we will not have another update, except for 4th of July festivites. Here's hoping and praying!

Oh, and on the lines of praying, please keep our cute transplant friend Bryce (you will have to sign up for Carepages (it's free) to view his info: BryceDraisey) in your prayers. He is waiting for his second heart and is extremely ill.

Happy 4th of July to everyone out there.
-Beckham & Co.