Wink from Heaven: Happy Birthday Caleb!

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Happy Birthday Caleb!

My sweet Caleb is five years old today! My mom writes a special story for each of her grandchildren on their birthdays. You can read Caleb's birthday story here.

16 comments:

Becky said...: My heart is FULL! I'm celebrating all the out here in NH. We LOVE you Caleb and know what a HUGE milestone this is. It's LOVE...you're growing on an incredible kind of love showered upon you daily by your mom and fmaily. xoxo; January 6, 2010 at 1:35 PM
Annie said...: Happy Birthday Caleb from all of your fans in the Eddy family!; January 6, 2010 at 2:24 PM
Kelly said...: Your mother is such a beautiful writer. I hope you have a wonderful day celebrating your amazing Caleb. We love him so much! Happy birthday Caleb!; January 6, 2010 at 3:38 PM
Joy said...: Wow! My eyes are wet and my hard is full. Your mother could not be more right. Happy Birthday Caleb!; January 6, 2010 at 4:48 PM
KimMoore said...: What a sweet story! Your mom is such a special lady! Happy Birthday Caleb!; January 6, 2010 at 6:44 PM
Unknown said...: thank you for sharing calebs story. again, with tears in my eyes, i am so thankful that God sent you Such a miracle, and i'm even more thankful at your example as you tenderly care for him.; January 6, 2010 at 8:26 PM
Suzanne said...: Happy Birthday Caleb!! You were able to enjoy both your birthday and christmas at home with your family. What a priceless gift! Know that we are think of you often and pray that all is well. Thank you for sharing your beautiful story with us.; January 7, 2010 at 1:12 AM
Princess Abigail said...: Happy Birthday Caleb!

What a star you are!

congratulations on an overwhelming achievement!!; January 7, 2010 at 9:30 AM
Tara Bennett said...: I am grateful for Caleb and his ability to teach so much in such a humble and special way. He has touched my life more than I could properly express, and I'm overjoyed because of this amazing milestone!

That story was just beautiful. What a special mama you have.; January 7, 2010 at 8:49 PM
MoonNStarMommy said...: HAPPY BIRTHDAY CALEB!!! It's a huge milestone!!

I found you via the Kidz site. I'm going through and adding everyone to my blog-roll :) Parents like us, we can always use more support.; January 8, 2010 at 6:49 PM
Jenn said...: That was such a beautiful story! Your mom certainly has a gift with words. I hope Caleb had an awesome birthday, he is such a special little guy!; January 9, 2010 at 8:28 PM
Candace said...: Hi,
I found your blog from Tara's. I have seen Caleb before but never read about him. What a wonderful miracle God gave you! My daughter, Faith, had a stroke at birth and has CP. So, I am right there with you, momma. I wanted to tell Caleb happy birthday, sweetie! Faith's birthday was on the Jan 7th and she turned 6. Five is such a milestone birthday! I read a book a few years ago called "If I make it to Five" by a neuro specialist who treated children with brain tumors. He suffered a traumatic brain injury after a bike accident and it was a touching book about what he learned from these children. So, to me FIVE was a mark in the sand! SO nice to meet you and Caleb. Look foward to reading more!; January 10, 2010 at 6:29 AM
Rodney and Deborah said...: Happy Birthday Caleb! You have such a sweet spirit that touches many lives, I know it did our family. You have such a great mission ahead of you, like grandma said and you have an amazing family that will help you achieve that goal. The Briggs Family; January 10, 2010 at 12:08 PM
Anonymous said...: Came across your blog today. My daughter has a few medical conditions including hydrocephalus and also has microphthalmic eye. Thanks for sharing your story with us.; January 10, 2010 at 1:24 PM
Anonymous said...: Hi again, Just wondering if you would mind me adding Caleb's blog to Violet's?; January 10, 2010 at 8:25 PM
Kel said...: I loved it. Thanks for the link. I can see that you are one in a long line of special moms.; January 14, 2010 at 3:29 PM

Prayer for Caleb

(written by Caleb's Grandma in her weekly column -2008-)

In my family we have a secret code to communicate our love for each other when we are out in public. We wink. When one of us is about to perform or speak, we look for a family member’s face in the crowd. Then we wink at each other. Closing one eye and winking is our secret code for saying, “I love you. You can do it. You’re wonderful.”

About three years ago, my grandson Caleb was born into our family. He must have known before birth that he would never be able to speak to us because he was born with one eyelid permanently closed. So, he is always “winking” at us, always communicating, “I love you. You can do it. You’re wonderful.”

Caleb has one eye lid permanently closed because he is missing one of his eyes . . . and he is also missing his brain. All the doctors said he would die soon after birth. They were wrong. Caleb is three years old. He is a medical miracle. The doctors say he can’t see, hear, speak, think or move. Those who know and love Caleb understand he has his own unique way of experiencing the world and communicating his love to those around him.

After Caleb was born the hospice people told us to buy a burial plot and continually warned us of his imminent death. We soon learned you can not live well in a state of fear and sadness. We decided we could spend Caleb’s entire life anxious and scared he might die at any moment, or we could celebrate each day we were blessed to have him with us. In the beginning, my daughter April celebrated Caleb’s birthday every week instead of every year with balloons and cupcakes because we simply did not know how long we would have him with us. We stopped the cupcakes after we gained ten pounds, but the celebrating goes on.

We all prayed for a miracle when we first learned about Caleb’s condition. We got one. Caleb’s birth, life and mission have had a deep and lasting impact on our lives. His spirit, eternal identity and most of all the loving, individual relationship he has with each of us is truly a miracle. Because of Caleb we know that each of us has a divine purpose and that the physical body is a sacred gift we should never take for granted. We better understand the worth of a soul and the resiliency of the human spirit.

Caleb’s five year old brother Matthew said, “Grandma. The doctors said Caleb was going to die, but he didn’t. That’s the first miracle I ever saw!”

Sometimes Caleb’s baby brother Mitchell pulls out his feeding tube while they hold hands riding together in their double stroller. Sometimes the only intervention that can get Caleb’s heart rate up is when his older brothers Josh and Matty crawl in his crib, hug him and sing, “I am a Child of God.” ...If you have a moment please offer a prayer for the little boy who has never been able to utter a single word and yet has taught everyone who knows and loves him – all the secrets of a rich and meaningful life.