Wink from Heaven: October 2010

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Halloween

From our Spooky little family

To yours!

Ahoy there matey!

Hope ye' land lubbers

get a lot of loot!

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Together we can...love

Matthew recently wrote this for school:

I have a brother who has a special body.

He can’t walk. He can’t talk. He can’t move his body in the way he wants. But does have his own language of love. One of the ways he tells me he loves me is with his wink. He is always winking because he only has one eye.

He shows me love when I lay by him. He is like a teddy bear because even though he can’t talk, he always listens. I can tell him my problems and he makes me feel happy.
When I’m having a hard day, I lay by him and he helps my bad feelings to melt away. He helps me to feel peaceful.

When I hug my brother I like to do a special arm lock with his arm and mine. My brother can’t hug me back, but when I want him to hug me I help him by putting his arms around my neck.

I can tell he’s happy when I’m around. When I come home from school and I’m near him, he usually gives me a smile.

My brother teaches me that love is the most important thing ever. He tells me with a feeling. He tells me with his heart. He shows me you don’t have to have a perfect body to love perfectly.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Show and Tell

Tomorrow I am helping Matthew's class with a Halloween art project.

His teacher e mailed me to tell me that Matthew would like to "Show and Tell" Caleb while I'm there.

I was touched.

Matthew isn't self conscious about his little brother.

He is proud.

He knows how special he is-

and when you experience something extra special.

You want to share.

I know just how he feels.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Conference weekend...

Frosting Halloween cookies with cousins

Swinging all together!

Snuggles and songs from Papa.


We had a wonderful conference weekend. We were touched by inspired council and we were surrounded by people we love!

My favorite quote from general conference:

"To live with gratitude in our hearts is to touch heaven."

Thomas S. Monson

Heaven sent...
We were blessed with a little boy who always winked!
Caleb's brain did not form, and doctors didn't expect him to live for more than a few weeks. After 8 days in the NICU doctors sent us home saying there was nothing more they could do. Among his various physical challenges, Caleb was missing one of his eyes. Even though he was never be able to say "I love you" with words, he told us every day with his "wink!" His little wink was a daily message of love from heaven.

Caleb’s spirit radiated pure love. He brought the love of God and light of Christ into the lives of all who knew him. Caleb’s life was a precious gift and a tender miracle. His winking eye was a daily reminder of Caleb’s deep love for all of us. Caleb could have quickly returned to heaven but instead he brought heaven to us for seven years.

Caleb was a precious gift to our family, and now it is our priveledge to live in such a way that we will be reunited with him forever.

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.