Dylan the Dalmation

Sunday night as I walked into Late Church, I saw my homeless friend Curtis, aka Hulk because he looks like Hulk Hogan, was sitting on one of the benches. His 3 month old puppy Dylan was laying about 5 feet from his feet and not looking so good. The week before he was running all over the place and tonight he looked really sick. I had brought some dog food for Curt to give to Dylan and the dog wouldn't touch it. Curt said he had been throwing up everything he ate or drank and was hot to the touch. My heart sank as I realized this was pretty serious. I told Curt to keep an eye on him and if anything changed to find a phone and call me.

Monday morning Curtis called me and told me Dylan was throwing up violently. I told him to sit tight and that I would try and find a vet. After placing a plethora of phone calls around Savannah, I found one willing to look at the dog for just an exam fee. I took Curtis and Dylan to the vet where it was quickly determined that the dog had parvo and was near death's door. Curtis was heartbroken and became worried that he would have to put his puppy down.

Parvo is a viral disease that attacks a dogs stomach lining and literally causes the dog to die within three days if not treated properly. This little puppy could be treated but the hospital bill was estimated to be $600 at the minimum.

Seeing the opportunity, I had no other choice but to step up and do what I could to reach out to this little puppy.

Whispering a prayer to God, I told the vet to work on saving the puppy and I would reach out to friends and volunteers down at the park to see if anybody would be willing to step up. Well God blew me away and still is. Within 36 hours four people stepped up with $375 for the bill. Now I just need $225 more and I really am trusting God to multiply it back to those who so generously gave.

Little dylan is fighting hard and still alive. The vet keeps me briefed on his condition and I firmly believe that God is going to show His love to Curt by keeping this dog alive and also by showing the benevolence of others. There is no doubt about it, if you do it unto the least of these (in this case it means a little dalmation puppy) you are doing it unto God. How cool is that!

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Stressed

There are so many irrational thoughts hitting my brain right now about him being gone.  With so much responsibility also comes the realization that none of it matters if I don’t continue to invest in my relationship with him.  I need to let go and trust God that He is going to take care of everything.  It took a lot for me to give my heart to somebody.  More than a year ago I was in love with somebody else who stomped on it and thought he could sneak by and communicate with another female behind my back.  My gut told me that something wasn’t right and sure enough, a little sleuthing unearthed so much more.  I have problems with trust.  Ben has my heart and I have no reason not to trust him, but when I see other girls become his friend on Facebook, this green headed monster raises its head and attacks my soul. Granted most of them are people he went to High School with, but still.

 

I trust him.  I love him.  It’s just hard being separated from the one you love.  Too many years of being cheated on by other boyfriends have ruined it for me.  Yet Ben is nothing like any of them.

 

He has my heart.  God has my heart. 

 

Deployments are tumultuous things to have to contend with.

 

I miss him so much.

Deployment

 

Dealing with the emotions of a deployment is no easy task to wrestle with, especially if the only practice you have really had with it has been from an ex boyfriend or two.  Nothing says reality like sending your husband off into a war zone.  I know that people mean well, but until it has affected them personally and in an immediate way, they really don’t have a clue what it means to be separated from somebody for months at a time.  My ability to just pick up the phone and call or text whenever I feel like it is no longer a viable option and you begin to realize just how meaningful everything in life is and how meaningless a lot of the other stuff really.

 

For safety’s sake I am not allowed to discuss really where he is going and for how long.  Do you blame me? Most people know that I want to become an expert in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and work directly with our combat veterans who are suffering from combat stress.  After the horrors of what transpired yesterday at Fort Hood with Major Hasan, I am even more convinced of my calling in life.  Without getting into the why of what happened yesterday, all I can say is that my heart is for reaching out to veterans, their families and their closest friends and help them walk the road to recovery.

 

Ben has my heart and soul.  Nobody knows the pain of sending somebody off into the unknown.  You are wracked with so many different emotions which oftentimes are confusing.  First there is the pain of separation, then the numbness, then the reality that you just sent off your warrior into a hostile area and there is a small chance that they may encounter the enemy or some other danger.

 

People have been telling me all sorts of things when they hear my husband is deployed.  Most mean well, but you would laugh if you heard the garbage that comes out of their mouth.  “I can’t imagine what it must feel like to send you husband off for15 months.” ….”My boss was a vietnam veteran and he almost died several times.” “What’s it like knowing you will be without your safety net for months at a time?”….the list goes on and on and on and on….

 

It’s been three weeks since he left with a lot more to go.  To be perfectly honest I cry often, but I am so proud of him.  Yes we have made a HUGE sacrifice for the sake of safety and protection of people all over the world, but God is in control and Ben is in His sovereign hands.