Growing Up

My life has been scarily "normal" lately.  I traveled to New Orleans this past weekend for my best friend's wedding, I have been going to work a little bit and spending as much time as possible outside with the boys.  From the outside, I think I look like I'm doing good.  Maybe at those times, in those moments, I am.  However, my pain on the inside is still so very raw and real.  I think at the beginning, I was so shocked and traumatized I could not even function.  Then, I started the "trance" mode where I could not concentrate or tear my mind away from Webb and the horrific end result for even one minute.  But the past week or so, I have felt a slight shift.  A small part of my mind is coming to terms with the fact that life really does go on.  As much as I've said it on this blog, I think a minuscule part of me finally started to believe it.  I still want time to rewind to December when I had Webb in my arms.  I would give ANYTHING for that.  But time does not rewind, no matter how bad we wish it would.  It is March.  Soon it will be summer, then fall, then Christmas again.  And we still will not have our precious Webb.  So what is my option?  Stop living?  Stay in bed?  That would be too easy.  Instead, I have to keep one foot in front of the other.  I have to live each day as though there will not be another, because we have been hit in the face with that reality a little too soon and a little too harshly.  I have to go on, for Zac, for Bo, for Whit...even for Webb as hard as that seems.  I have to push forward and tell you all about this journey so you know that life does go on in the midst of unthinkable despair.  God has not left my side.  There were times I almost wanted Him to so I could be as angry as I wanted to be.  And I still get so angry, but He does not leave.  I picture Him seeing me as a spoiled child, stomping my feet because He didn't give me what I wanted, much the same way as Bo and Whit do when I tell them they can't have cookies for breakfast.  Why??  I keep asking Him.  "You'll understand when you grow up," He answers, just as I do when Bo and Whit ask me the same questions.  Of course, "growing up" is not easy, and I may never be fully "grown," at least not in this lifetime.  I have to hope when God's plan is revealed, it will make perfect sense why Webb is not with us.  It will not happen in this lifetime, but I have faith it will happen.  Right now, I have to focus on my perfect angel up in heaven, waiting for us, but not impatiently.  I have to live this life with no regrets.  This life of losing a child is painful and real and scary, but it is my life.  I will make the best of it, no matter how hard that is to do.  So when you see me laughing, smiling and enjoying the real world, it is not because I am in denial.  (Oh, how I almost wish for denial.)  It is because at that time, at that moment, I am enjoying life.  Fortunately, there are about a million moments in my days no one except God will ever see....and it is in those moments and those times I feel His love the most.  He wills me to go on when I cannot fathom it.  Every morning, He helps me out of bed and into the world.  Most of you will never see the struggle I go through just to leave the house.  But somehow, some way, I do it and I sometimes even enjoy it.  Then, there are times I do not enjoy it and the simplest things become too much.  Today at work, a situation that usually I would let roll off my back sent me into hysterics.  The pain of losing Webb is still always at the front of my mind, and that is a hard thing to function around.  There is not a moment that goes by that I do not think of him.  But I keep living because of him, for him.  And by the grace of God, I keep pushing on.   

To My Boys...

I loved every one of you the minute I found out about you.  I can honestly say I did not understand what unconditional love was until I saw Bo for the first time.  I did not think it was possible to love anything that much....until I saw Webb and Whit.  I would sit in the rocking chair in your nurseries and hold you for hours.  Sometimes just one of you at a time, smelling your sweet baby skin, sometimes all three of you at once.  I remember the feeling of overwhelming joy the first time each of you smiled at me.  I remember looking at you, thinking, who was I before these boys were born?  I always heard you would die for your children, and I thought it too, but I never wanted so desperately to be able to die for one of you until I found out Webb had a brain tumor.  If it were possible to trade places with him, I would have done it without hesitation.  Bo and Whit, you are the reason I still get out of bed in the morning even though my heart is broken.  Webb, you are the reason I want to be a better mother and the thing I am most looking forward to about heaven.  Without the three of you, I would be empty and shallow.  Because of you, I believe there is a purpose to this life which has left me a changed person.  I would suffer a million heartbreaks to keep you safe.  If God had told me he would give me three children and take one at 18 months, I would have all three of you and endured the pain all over again just to have known Webb and taken care of him for that short time.  Was it long enough?  No.  Is life ever long enough to be with the people you love this much?  I don't think so.  I thank God for the privilege of being your mother.  It is my most important job and the one I love the most.  There are simply not enough words to explain the depth of my feelings for all of you.  Giving you life has saved my life.                

Some wisdom

I had never looked at a blog until after Webb died, and I see what a huge world I was oblivious to.  One thing I am grateful for is the way this blog has been able for me to communicate with friends, family and acquaintances who knew of our tragedy as it was unfolding.  The newest thing I am grateful for are the people I never knew and never would have known that are also suffering through a great loss.  Thanks to all of you who have passed on websites of those who are going through similar situations.  Thanks to all of you who have shared your own similar situation.  I pray for all of you daily.  If I am able to help just one person relate to this horrible pain, this blog has been worth it.  For those of you who know someone going through a similar situation and are looking for wisdom, I have some thoughts to share.  Although I am still very early in my grieving, I know the things that have, and have not, helped as we have stumbled along this nightmare.  I know you do not know what to say to a person who has had their life ripped out from underneath them.  Many have told me they are afraid of saying the "wrong" thing.  Do not avoid them because you are afraid of this...especially if you were very close to this person before the tragedy.  That will make the grieving person feel very alone.  A simple, "I love you, I am so sorry," will suffice.  "I am thinking of you and praying for you," works too.  If you are a very close friend or family member, just be there.  Call, even if you know the person will not answer.  Send an email, share a story, send a text...just do not pull away.  No one is offended by prayers, love or support, however you present it.  We have been blessed to receive all of that tenfold since Webb died.  Others are not so lucky.  As far as "wrong" things to say go, there are a few.  :)  Don't say, "Because of you, I now know how blessed I am."  That does not bring comfort.  Don't say, "Because of you, I now hold my kids just a little tighter every day."  That is wonderful but does not bring a person who can't hold their loved one any comfort.  And don't say,  "If I were you, I wouldn't be able to ______(get out of bed, go to work, laugh, smile, carry on, go out to eat, go on vacation, live life, etc)"  You have no clue what you would do or how you would react, so don't pretend you would.  Also, it implies that person did not love their child as much as you do because they are going on with life.  Which, believe it or not, is what you have to do.  It is the hardest thing that person has ever done, rest assured.  Smiling is rare, and they do not want to feel guilty for doing so.  Getting out of bed is a big enough struggle and the griever is just doing everything and anything they can to get through the day.  For all of you I have been "introduced" to through blogging, I pray for you daily.  If you are a supporter of someone who is going through this unimaginable pain, just be there to listen, hug and offer support.  Don't ask what you can do, just do it.  That is the greatest gift you can give.  

Some Favorite Pictures...

Snow Day

It is pouring snow in Atlanta.  For a city that sees snow maybe once a year, this is a big deal.  It is the first day of March, and the snow is fitting for my mood on this Sunday.  Bo and Whit are PUMPED.  Of course, my mind is thinking how much Webb would have loved this special treat.  It doesn't take away from my joy in watching my other 2 sons enjoy the day, but the son that is missing is, of course, what is on my mind.  When I was a little girl, snow days were a big deal.  The anticipation of getting to miss a day of school, to forget about driving anywhere or doing anything, to just hunker down by a fire and play outside until my cheeks got numb...that was such a wonderful, different kind of "break."  I wish my grieving could take a snow day.  I wish there was one day I could escape every care, every worry and embrace the present.  It was never as easy as it was when I was a child, but now, it is impossible.  I have heard about the stages of grief, which I have said before cannot be neatly defined since you experience all the stages at once and at random every day.  But I have thought about grieving (my experience at least) as the most physically, emotionally exhaustive thing I have ever done.  It is constant.  It is taxing.  It is excruciating.  It is painful.  And there are no "snow days."  I cannot remember things that happened just minutes before, but I cannot forget the things that happened from 4:30 pm on December 23 until 4:30 pm on December 26.  The physical pain inside my chest and deep within my body is, at times, unbearable.  My dreams confuse the past and present, and one minute I am holding Webb again, and the next I am sitting at his funeral in a different location, surrounded by people I have never seen.  My senses are on high alert - I can hear and smell things from miles away.  I feel like a little egg that at any moment could break.  But I also have a strange sense of wanting to continue, of wanting to move forward.  I have a feeling of having to muddle through this dark, senseless time to reach the other side.  I do not feel desperate (right now anyway), but I desperately want to get through this with my memories and my sanity intact.  I never wanted to be in this situation, in fact, it was my worst nightmare.  But it is the situation I am in, it is the card I have been dealt.  How we go forward from here is the most important decision we'll ever make.  I pray for the strength to move forward in a way that makes all 3 of my children proud and maybe, just maybe, come out of this blizzard in my soul as a stronger, better person for having loved and lost.  We will see.                    

Promises

February 26.  Has it really been two months?  The warm day today in Atlanta gave me mixed emotions.  Part of me wanted to embrace the change of year, and part of me ached for it to be as cold as it was two months ago, when I still had Webb.  Part of me wants to rewind to December and put my Christmas tree back up and have the feet of my 3 little boys pitter pattering underneath me while Zac and I hung ornaments.  I want to hear Webb and Whit and their "twin talk" and watch them wrestle on the floor.  I can still remember it, but I am terrified the memories are not as clear as they used to be.  I wouldn't change on minute of the way we lived Webb's 18 months with him, I just wish I could do it all again, then maybe the memories would be more permanent.  The last two months, this horrific journey of grief that had just begun, will hopefully be the worst chapter in a very long, fulfilled book of our lives, but I would do it all over again to have him for another day, another month, another year.  

This morning, I could not get out of bed.  That has not happened to me since the first couple weeks after Webb died, so I embraced it and allowed myself to stay in bed.  Most mornings I leap out of bed and start my routine with the boys, which has helped my anxiety.  But this morning, I did not feel anxious, I just felt....tired.  Something about it being the 26th affected me in a way I didn't think it would.  After I got up, I went out to the cemetery.  It was lunchtime, and there were several people coming out to see loved ones.  I sat there and picked pieces of pine straw off his grave and I wondered if he was looking down.  I told him how much I loved and missed him and how I needed him to watch over his brothers.  I cried until my eyes and chest ached.  I was again reminded of how unnatural it seemed to be visiting my child at a cemetery.  And then, I came home and played outside with Bo and Whit.  Their happiness, innocence and smiles brought me back to a more peaceful place in my soul.  Bo told us today (out of the clear blue) that Webb was not going to live with Jesus forever and ever; he was going to come home soon.  I was at a loss for words.  I just looked at him and hugged him tight.  Some days I do not have the heart to tell this little boy he will never see his brother again.  I cannot fathom it, so why should he?

 I have been thinking rather philosophically in the 2 months since I lost Webb.  Many of those thoughts are on this blog.  Most of those wonderings have come from the depth of my heartache and soul searching.  I have pondered God's works and His mercy.  I have read pages and pages of Scripture, seeking answers to my questions about heaven and God's plan for all of us.  And I can tell you what I have found: comfort.  Not despair, not anger.  My God is loving and good.  He loves us and grieves with us.  He is sad that I am sad.  He could have given me a "miracle" and saved Webb this Christmas, but the miracle would only be temporary since Webb's life would have ended one day.  The only true miracle God promises us is eternal life, not happiness on Earth.  The miracle is that when I leave this Earth, I will go straight into the arms of Jesus, and Webb will come straight into the arms of me.  Does that make this pain go away?  Absolutely not.  Will I continue to ache for Webb and be angry he is not with me?  Every day of my life.  But I still have hope.  I still have God's promise.  And that is worth living a good life.        

Update

Jamelle is back, thank God!!  She is feeling much better, and we are all so glad she is going to be ok.  Thank you all for your prayers.  The boys were so excited to see her and spend time with her today.  I also took two big steps...Sunday was my first day back to church service, and Monday I went into work for the first time since December 23.  I only stayed a couple hours, and it was an odd experience, but it is done.  I would be lying if I said I am 100% ready to be back at work.  I am not sure I'll ever be ready, and the truth is, I am a different person than the one who walked out the door December 23.  But going back, starting over and trying to do something besides grieving is important to me.  It has been 9 weeks, and it was time to try.  I am taking very small steps, but I do feel like I have accomplished something huge.  Today, I also went to the cemetery for the first time in several weeks.  I have not felt compelled to go there much, as I know it is only Webb's body that is there, and his spirit is everywhere.  But today, I felt the urge to go, so I went.  I knelt down by his grave and sobbed for several minutes.  I talked to him and prayed for him and for us.  It was such a peaceful moment, but very surreal. "Am I really visiting one of my children at a cemetery?" I kept thinking to myself.  I looked at his name and the dates of his birth and death on the temporary plaque, and it still seemed as unbelievable as it always does.  Webb is gone.  The little name I picked out, my namesake, the name I wrote on pieces of paper when I was pregnant with the twins: "Webber Bennett Broach," is now etched in stone.  Is this really still happening?  I was telling a friend of mine today that I feel like I am clinging to a tree in the middle of a tornado.  I can only focus on the present, because anything farther away than an hour seems too overwhelming.  My mind is still processing the shock we went through this Christmas, and the shock is too huge to be gone yet.