B-is for Brady B-Strong

 

TUESDAY, MAY 4, 2010

B-is for Brady B-Strong

One of the positive things that have come out of my diagnosis with the VILLAIN is the opportunity to meet some of the strongest, bravest people I know. Whenever I go to the Mayo Clinic, the grocery store, or the mall, I am blessed to meet people who will forever stay in my prayers and heart. Last week, at a pizza shop in Tempe, Eric and I met a man who I have been thinking about every day since. He noticed that we had a relay for life sticker in our car and that I was bald. He approached Eric and asked about my VILLAIN. As he and Eric talked, I was in the distance and could tell they were talking about me. The man introduced himself and immediately started to cry, I hugged him, and he told me about his 2-year-old son.

Brady was diagnosed with a rare VILLAIN at age 3 months. He told me that Brady is the youngest to ever be diagnosed. He told of the struggle it has been as a parent to watch his child go through the agony he has endured over the past 2 years. Brady has been put under over 80 times in his short life. He has a breathing tube through his nose, he does not know what it is like to run outside and play, and he will never be able to do the normal things in life that we all take for granted. My heart ached for this man. Both Eric and I got emotional and cried as he spoke. It's much easier to handle when adults are diagnosed; a young child does not understand what is happening to them. This is the only life Brady knows. The man took a bracelet off his arm and gave it to me; it said B-is for Brady B-Strong!!

This week, thinking about Brady made me think about the Savior and the agony and suffering he went through in the Garden of Gethsemane. His Father had to watch HIS son go through the worse pain any person has ever had to endure, and Heavenly Father could have taken it all away and stopped it at any time, but he didn't because it was all part of the plan. I'm sure that our Heavenly Father suffered along with HIS son, knowing the pain he was going through.
As we go through our trials, I'm sure Heavenly Father looks down on us all and wants to take away the pain, he feels our anguish and has the power to take it all away, but he doesn't because this too is part of his plan. Our trials are all part of HIS plan, how we endure and who we become through our trials.