Heaven over Hospital

It's all over Facebook, the article on CNN Heaven over Hospital - Dying girl, age 5, makes a choice. http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/27/health/girl-chooses-heaven-over-hospital-part-1/index.html

Reading this article hit home...the girl is dying of an incurable disease. She has a rare neurodegenerative illness. She was in and out of the hospital 3 times in a 10 month period getting unimaginable procedures (a suction catheter inserted into her nose, past her throat and into her lungs to clear out the secretions). Initially, she was only affected in her arms and legs, then came the respiratory. After watching their child go through unimaginable procedures, unable to fight back as they were being done because she was too weak to move and only seeing the tears stream down her cheeks, they decided to talk to her about Heaven. At what age do you talk to your dying child about Heaven...where do they want to go Heaven or Hospital (where they know those procedures will continue to happen). You know there is no way they will get better...there is no light at the end of the tunnel when you will have your healthy child back, the light at the end of the tunnel has your child out of pain, running, jumping, cutting, speaking, eating....but they are in Heaven.

Children who go through unimaginable things are wise beyond their years. They get things, things which adults don't sometimes get. I believe they know they are dying, they know there is no getting better...they know what their bodies can and can't take. They know they are getting tired and weaker. You can see it in their eyes, hear it in their voices and the things they say. You see it in their smiles. They may not be able to express it in words but they know and you know.

It has been over a year since Ian's last hospital stay. We have managed to keep him healthy, to keep the nasty out of our home...but we know it will come in again...it's just a matter of time. Since his last hospital stay, we have had a similar talk with Ian about Heaven over Hospital...he gets so much more then you think. He knows what is happening with his body, he knows he is dying, knows he won't come off the vent, knows what he knows. He does not want to go back to the hospital, he doesn't want to be home, he wants to be at the Gilchrist Hotel. He knows heaven over hospital means he will be loved by many others he has not met yet, mommy, daddy and Becca will get there later after him. He knows he will be out of pain, running, jumping, walking, cutting, speaking, eating, swimming all the things he watches others do, all the things he used to do. 

Brian and I have decided to let Ian make this decision, to agree with his wishes...we completely and whole heartly agree with the parents of the little girl.