Chapter Ten
Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version,
copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a division of Good News Publishers.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter Ten
Mike Comes Home
“For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you. Isaiah 54: 10
When Mike returned from his sea trial, he listened as his wife recounted every detail of what had happened the last time she had walked Max and Sam. He was thankful she was okay. Or was she?
“I didn’t recognize the woman my wife had become. She was always so sure, so strong, and so confident. When she told me she could still feel the heat from the exhaust of the pickup and hear that jerk racking a shell, I reassured her.
“You’re okay. He’s not going to bother you.” She looked at me in disbelief, and seemed to want more from me.
“I did notice the one thing that seemed to help Anne most was when we would hike in the Olympic Mountains. We did that every spare minute we could, mostly weekends. I loved having a wife who enjoyed the outdoors as much as I did, and being outside, no matter what we did, was something we both still enjoyed.
“The fresh air was exhilarating, the views were spectacular, and spending time in God’s beautiful creation seemed to provide some comfort for Anne. And we loved having the dogs with us—their outdoor antics provided lots of laughs.”
There had been plenty of challenges for one year—Mike and Anne were ready to welcome a new year, hopefully one with better things in store.
“The stress of Mom’s passing, turning down an opportunity at Portsmouth, moving from Italy to Washington, and adjusting to new jobs was more than enough, not to mention Anne’s encounter with that creep.
“Perhaps if that jerk had gone to jail, Anne wouldn’t have had such a rough time. But in spite of what law enforcement learned about that guy’s history of assault, he didn’t. They let him off with a warning—unbelievable! We were dumbfounded.”
Mike said that when he and Anne got tired of hiking, they would go biking or take a backpacking trip. They relished each hour they spent outdoors.
“God had indeed been good in leading us to such a beautiful state.
“When December rolled around, I realized I just wasn’t up for marathon bike rides or backpacking trips. I would make some excuse to Anne about being tired from work or not feeling good.
“At first, my wife thought I might have a cold or maybe even a mild case of flu. She finally told me she was tired of hearing me complain, and she made me promise to do some blood work on myself. I agreed—it was the only way to get her to stop bugging me.
“I was sure Anne was worried for no reason. After all, we both put in full days at work, we spent lots of time outdoors, and I was convinced it would just take a little more time to shake off whatever was draining my energy.”
It didn’t take long for Mike to realize he couldn’t continue to ignore his symptoms.
“I was feeling weak and extremely tired, I would experience dizziness, and my urine looked like dark tea. It was time to honor my promise to Anne.
“Anne was attending a Christmas party at the vet clinic when my results came in. She later told me she had been sharing stories of favorite patients when the call came telling her I was being taken to the hospital. The only explanation the nurse offered was that my low blood count was caused by a bleeding gastrointestinal issue.
“When I got to the hospital they did an endoscopy procedure and determined my low blood count wasn’t because of intestinal bleeding. I had no bleeding. That was good news, but it didn’t explain why my blood count was unusually low.
“If I wasn’t losing blood, then my blood count was low because either my body wasn’t making enough blood cells or my blood was being destroyed somehow. Either way, that wasn’t good. Anne and I kept telling ourselves that I just had a lousy virus of some kind, and that with a little time, I’d be feeling better.
“My doctor ordered more tests, including a bone marrow biopsy. It was terrible, because my mom had several of the same procedures, and now I was going through the same testing.
With Christmas right around the corner, having no answers was nerve racking. The season would be tough enough, given the recent loss of Mom and our concern for Dad."
Test Results
“After three additional days of testing I was still in the hospital. I had finally received some answers. I couldn’t call Anne. She’d be in after work, and we could talk then. Anyway, I needed some time to compose myself and stop crying. It’s not how I wanted Anne to see me.”
Mike wasn’t aware of the sign outside his hospital room. Anne noticed it immediately. It read, ‘Use extreme caution. Patient very knowledgeable.’
“When Anne came in the room, I was sitting on the edge of the bed, tears still streaming down my face. A social worker kept her from coming closer.
“The next thing I heard was the social worker speaking to Anne. Her tone was gruff. “’Mrs. Schlegel, I’ll put it to you frankly. It appears your husband has acute leukemia and approximately six weeks to live.’”
“After having lost Mom to acute leukemia less than six months ago, those words seemed suspended in the sterile atmosphere of my room. I glanced up at Anne. She seemed ready to explode. And then, she turned to the social worker; the expression on her face was one I had seen before. Thankfully, the lady recognized she wasn’t welcome and left.
“I could tell Anne was numb. She came and sat on the bed beside me. She took my hands in hers. We locked eyes, and then, she bowed her head and began to pray. Her voice was soft, yet strong. She didn’t struggle for one word. I knew the Holy Spirit was speaking through her. I distinctly remember her telling me that God wanted all of my life, and if I kept my eyes on Him this wouldn’t end in death.”
Mike said he and Anne sat and cried for some time. They could do nothing else. For distraction, Mike had turned the television on earlier in the day. No doubt it was the social worker who had muted the sound.
“When we glanced up from our prayerful meditation, we looked at the TV. What we saw brought a smile to our faces. Neither of us had smiled for a while. A game show, Wheel of Fortune, was on, and someone had just solved a puzzle. There on the screen, in black and white, was the two word solution, in capital letters:
DIVINE
INTERVENTION
***
I glanced up from my notes. Anne seemed to be elsewhere—no doubt recalling the moment when she and Mike saw that two word solution to a game show puzzle. Shivers ran down my spine. I wanted to hear the details of how those two words played out in their lives.