School started back up this week...my new kids started orientation today! It was a beautiful day and the kids did really well.
Running is going well also...I plan to run the Grand Rapids Marathon in October so I have been training most of the summer.
But what has kept my mind full no matter how hard I try to shake it is memories of August and September 3 years ago. I was training for my first 10 mile run - the Bridge Run here in Grand Rapids (I will be running this this year also). I was welcoming new students to school. And I was anticipating the death of my youngest son.
I knew it was coming...the doctors had told me in June that I would have 6 months with him but Ethan was on different timing. His speech was slurred, he had gained almost 20 pounds in 2 months, and he was having mini-seizures. I was trying to memorize every moment...I knew the moments would not be forever.
Ethan knew it was coming too. He never said anything to me but in his actions he told us that his body was shutting down.
So it begins the rollercoaster of memories that I have found comes to me every year about the end of August and will end about the middle of September. Yes, tears fall, yes, there is laughter, yes, there is sadness. But at the end of the ride, I get off knowing that Ethan is home...waiting for me and all of us. I'm thankful for his homecoming and wait patiently for the day my vacation will end.
