Page 6 - Journey of Hope by Raymond Moldenhauer

DAY1
I will be your God through all of your lifetime.
I made you and I will care for you. Isaiah 46:4
THE START OF A LONG RIDE
I was sitting in a conference room in Bermuda yesterday
morning for the start of a meeting when my cell phone rang. I
didn’t speak, I just listened as my wife Kathie told me that Heidi
had gone into labor. Everyone in the room could see my face get
pale and my eyes just stare. After a moment, I told Kathie I
would try to get a flight back home as soon as I could.
The room was still silent as I got off the phone, and after an
awkward moment of saying nothing, I explained the situation. I
asked to use their phone to call the airport to see if I could still
get on the flight that was leaving that morning in 2 hours. The
seat was confirmed, so I raced back to my hotel to pack and
headed to the airport. Had the call come an hour later, I would
have been stuck in Bermuda until the next day.
The short direct flight to Philadelphia seemed like an eternity to
me. I sat in my seat and just gazed into a world of nothing,
wondering what the future would hold. When I finally walked
into the Delivery Waiting Room, I was greeted by Kathie. Her
eyes were showing the effects of her tears as she explained that
Heidi had just given birth to a 1 pound, 10-ounce baby girl, and
that the hospital was now making arrangements to immediately
transfer Alyssa to the NICU at Christiana Hospital. Late that
evening Kathie and I drove home – mostly in silence and in
tears.
This morning, Kathie and I went to see Heidi at Kent General.
She looked much better today and seemed to be in pretty good
spirits... at least while I was there. I would learn that later she
broke down with Kathie… upset that she couldn’t hold her
daughter like the other mothers, and blaming herself for what
happened. She will be discharged from the hospital tomorrow
and will take part in the caring process for Alyssa.