Rest

     A couple of you have said--and I know many, many others feel the same--that you sometimes feel like jumping in a car or onto a plane to come out to support Aaron and Kari during the gaps when they might be alone.  We're working on a calendar function that might help us coordinate such visits, but that probably won't be up for a while.  Also, we're waiting to find out what kind of lodgings the Craig Hospital will provide when Kari is admitted to the 90-day rehab program.  And what will the routine of rehab really be like?  How do visitors fit into this routine?  We don't quite know any of this yet.

     That's the wait now.  When can Kari start the formal rehab process?  We're thinking a spot will open up sometime mid- to late next week, but that's not for certain yet.  Meanwhile, though she still struggles to get comfortable with breathing, she IS getting stronger.  This morning the fever of yesterday was gone.  It kept creeping back some of the day, though never quite as high, and her arms felt just right to the touch, whereas yesterday they were very hot, especially in the morning.  They plan a scope of her lungs tomorrow sometime to help remove any stubborn pockets of mucus that might be low down and making it harder for her to adjust.  The ventilator is still very low--the exhaling pressure especially--so she continues to breathe pretty much on her own.

     What she got a little tired of today was people!  She is so gracious to all of us, and she loves seeing people, but that's tiring too, as you might expect.  Today people were in from various places in Illinois.  She has visitors scheduled Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, some of them kids from St. Charles and Brookside who are at IYC.  She'll be excited to see them, but Shona and others are keeping those visits short so as not to tire her too much.  Still, even with all the visitors, Aaron will now be shouldering most of the hour by hour responsibilities of just being there for her. Linda will be with him until Thursday afternoon.  Hold them up in prayer, please, especially during the down times when visitors leave.  Hold up Sarah in prayer.  She heads back to California early tomorrow.  What an angel she has been.  Along with Kari's Mom she knows more about caring for Kari than any of us and has done better than any of us will be able to do in the next few weeks.  Pray for her and all those who are going on the Ethiopia mission trip so dear to Kari's heart. 

     Today they changed Kari's bed to an air one, which will help prevent bed sores and shape itself more to her body.  What a job the transfer was, and then the adjusting to something else new.  It tired her out, and at one point as she was being lifted and adjusted, she said, "Don't drop me," and "Does the bed have rails?"  She also told her Dad that she felt like her hands were full of electricity.  That hurt her.  Then again, we can't help but think that might be a good sign as well.  Pray for God to heal her completely, for the C5 - C6 area to come back to life more and more each hour.  Pray also for peace of mind.  Kari has great faith, but things go fast, then they go slow, things swirl around you, then become almost too still, and these moment by moment changes, the struggling to be weaned off the ventilator, the tiredness, the fever which comes and goes--these cause tension and frustration.  Pray that she can relax as much as possible, that fears of being dropped fade away quickly.  Her body will need more and more rest as she works harder and harder to get stronger, but her spirit will need even more rest.  "I heard the voice of Jesus say, Come unto me and rest."  I pray that she hears her Lord's voice saying this over and over to her. 

 

--Richard R. Guzman  

Answers to some recent questions

     A couple of quick answers to recent questions:

 

     Send your emails to KAREN Morris-Guzman, room 4277, NOT Kari.  As before, emails addressed to Kari have a much higher chance of not showing up at all, and I myself did not see any emails actually delivered today.  We'll try to check on what happened tomorrow.

 

     The fact that they moved Kari does mean that they think she's out of the acute phase of her injuries, though her Mom just said a couple of hours ago that she herself still thinks of Kari as "critical."  They have placed her in a room right next to the nurses station and have her monitored well. 

 

--Richard R. Guzman

There'll be days like these...

     Kari is still doing very well, but this has been one of those frustrating days.  It started in the early morning with Kari having a fever of 101.4.  They don't know yet where it's from, but have not put her on antibiotics yet either.  By this evening the fever was down to 100.  Some tests are back, some not, but people seem to be on top of the situation and monitoring it well.  Then there has been the coughing, which is very hard on her, especially because the coughs don't seem to be very productive.  They have tried to suction her more often, but this doesn't seem to have relieved her much, so they will be doing stronger suction techniques this evening.  It's been such a struggle to feel comfortable breathing today, and sometimes she actually forgets she can't move, and, of course, the quick realization adds frustration.  She's felt uncomfortable in the new room, and it seems that part of this might be that it's drier in there.  That's better for the trache tube, but causes her nose and skin to itch, and perhaps there is something in the room she's slightly allergic too.  That's not great for her asthma.  We're trying to stay on top of these things too.  On the other hand, they have hardly increased her ventilator support, though tonight that have her on a setting which will give her more support if she tires too much.  They seem quite confident that she'll be able to be weaned from the ventilator, and each breath she takes on her own she gets stronger.  "Well, boot camp is kind of starting right now, Kari," I said, and she smiled.  Linda wondered whether she thought she had to be completely off the ventilator before starting rehab.  Sure enough she did, and when we told her she didn't she whispered, "Thank you for telling me that," and her whole body relaxed.  It's like yesterday when she thought she was moving to Denver for good.  "We've got to communicate better," Linda said, "so she doesn't have to figure out so much on her own."  We'll try.

     Today the caliper in Linda's right rear brakes suddenly froze up, ruining the rotor and pads back there, and the Hyundai dealer told us it couldn't get parts until Monday.  We had planned to leave mid-day Sunday, but this made us think again about our plans.  Linda has now decided to stay an few extra days, while I fly home to take care of job things.  Her decision made Aaron relax, and Kari's parents relax too, because they have been here non-stop and have to return home Tuesday morning for job and health reasons.  John and Dustin left this morning.  Sarah will leave Monday because Kari insists she go on the Ethiopia trip as planned, and she has an appointment Wednesday to have all her shots on one day.  Ouch.  All this would have left Aaron totally alone for most of the week.  There will be many times in the months to come when Aaron will have to face being alone like this, but it's probably too early to leave him alone for this long.  Now Linda and Aaron can split duties, spell each other, and also share a car until almost the day that friends arrive from Loma Linda with Aaron's car on Saturday, and Rob comes back in next Monday.  Maybe God froze the caliper--who knows?

     It's the old Shirelles' tune: "Mama said there'll be days like this, There'll be days like this, my Mama said."  Luckily we have other tunes, too, about peace and rivers and solid rocks.  We covet your prayers as much, maybe more, on days like this, and for weeks like the one coming up.

 

--Richard R. Guzman    

Moving Kari

     No sooner had I gotten back to Kari's floor from posting my last update than they announced they were moving Kari out of the critical care unit and to a new room one floor up.  Kari's room number is now #4277.  When you send her emails send them to Karen Morris-Guzman, room 4277.  The hospital updated the info almost immediately, but it might happen that a few of your emails get lost.  Shona and Linda are putting emails in binders.  One big binder is already full, another is half full, and there's a third waiting.  Thank you all for taking time to write.  It lifts everyone's spirits here.

     With all the progress Kari is making, there are still many moments of suffering.  When Kari tries to cough and when she has to be suctioned these are moments still very hard on her, and they are difficult to watch.  When she suddenly found she was moving, I saw a look of fear come over her face as people were moving all around her, packing up her belongings, taking things down from walls, unhooking all the wires and tubes she still depends on, and wheeling her down strange corridors to a strange new room.  I thought of the fear that must have gripped her in those first few hours after she got to this hospital with no one around that she knew, Aaron 250 miles away, her parents 550, and us over 1000 miles away.  Before they moved her they had to suction her several times, and also after she got settled in the room.  When she tries to cough her body, especially her right arm, shakes, and there is that panic we all get when we can't quite catch our breath.  These things happen side by side with what everyone here can see is amazing progress.  God has not given us a spirit of fear, but it hovers near at times, held off by the enormous hope and trust we feel in God, and by the knowledge that you all are out there praying and sending your love.  We're on our way to having two binders full of proof for that.  Thank you all, again and again.

 

--Richard R. Guzman

Supporter websites

If you are a supporter of Kari and Aaron and run a website or blog, I would like to link back to your site from here. Please comment on this post and leave your URL and name, and I will start building a list of links.

Thanks!

Today's miracles

     We first saw Kari for the two or three days after surgery.  Now we're back in Denver, just 12 days after that surgery and we were stunned to see her progress!  All the tubes are out of her mouth and off her face and the bruises on her chin have almost disappeared.  She is bright and alert and beautiful and can whisper well even with the tracheotomy tube.  There seems to be mounting confidence that she will be able to breathe completely on her own, and the plan is to lower the ventilator setting each day.

     This morning she downed a mixed berry smoothie.  She told us she has more feeling now down to her wrist on both arms and even says she has some slight sensations in her legs.  She's reading the emails and cards we hold up to her and recognizing just about all of you who send her these wonderful greetings.  Keep it up.  If you haven't already, go to the Swedish Hospital website to send her and Aaron emails (address them to Karen Morris-Guzman, room 4277).  We pray for miracles, then when we see them, it's hard to believe them.  Or maybe we are just so overjoyed at God's goodness that we act like we can hardly believe them.  But keep praying and asking for complete healing.  Today Pastor Fowler annointed her with oil and asked for this in faith.  Her own tenacity and faith is such that the medical staff here are jockeying to get to take care of her, signing up days in advance to be sure to get her.  But no one, not even Kari, can get through this on her own faith alone, and she does tire easily still.  She herself recognizes what a long, hard road is ahead.  Please keep her and Aaron lifted up in these crucial days to come.  Rehab will be kind of like boot camp.

     Aaron is now 99.9% sure that he will keep Kari here in Denver for the rehab.  The Craig Hospital seems to offer by far the best program in the country.  Rehab could start as early as mid- next week and continues for 90 days, the last 45 of which is where they put her and Aaron together in an apartment and teach them how best to live together with her present condition.  Steps are being taken now to move them out of their present apartment in California, saving them a couple of months rent, and to begin the hunt for a more suitable, handicapped accessible apartment.  These are rare in the area where they live.  The two in their present complex are occuppied, so please pray that some housing will turn up.  While we marvel at her progress and pray earnestly for complete healing, we plan these other ways too.  That's the balance demanded:  believe completely, plan ahead carefully.  Pray for us in this as well.

     Besides the many visitors, I want to personally thank Kari's mother Karen Morris and brother Dustin Morris, who have been towers of strength.  Dustin has taken the lead in helping to figure out so many details.  He gives Aaron credit for being so strong.  We give him all the credit for being there side by side with him.  When Dustin told her that Aaron was probably going to keep her in Denver, she at first seemed so troubled.  We came to find out later that she thought she was moving to Denver for good.  She wants to finish school (she's three courses shy of her masters at Azusa Pacific) and continue working at Brookside Church.  With your help and prayers we hope she gets back to California around early November and begins on these dear tasks again.

 

--Richard R. Guzman   

    

Your direct line to Kari

Through the wonders of modern technology, and perhaps with the assistance of cute little monkeys employed by the Swedish Hospital, you are able to send an email directly to Kari!

How to do this? Simple. Just click here.

You'll need to type in Kari's name and room number as follows:
Kari Morris-Guzman Karen Morris-Guzman (Thanks, Mr. Guzman, for the correction)
Room 3144 New room: 4277 (Thanks Cyndi!)

As of Thursday, July 28

Via weloveyoukari.org:

Each time we start to read an email and state who it is from, Kari's face lights up with a smile as she recognizes your names. She is amazed you take the time to write to her and she is very thankful. Kari is breathing better today. The pressure support from the ventilator has been decreased from 15 to 10. They are hoping to decrease it to 5 later today and possibly remove the ventilator tomorrow or the next day. When we are reading the emails to her, we all are moved to tears sometimes, and as you start to cry, you naturally hold your breath a little. The trouble is, if Kari holds her breath very long, it sets off an alarm on the ventilator, which then makes us laugh and we have to encourage her to breath through the crying from the emails! :)

When Derin and I came in this morning John handed me a cup of ice chips to give her! Another exciting celebration! She can have ice chips! She asked her mom to flavor them with jello, but that request is still on hold per doctor approval :) Speech therapy brought in blue vanilla pudding this afternoon (I guess you cannot color chocolate pudding blue very well) and Kari once again swallowed it perfectly! It is a miracle how much easier she could swallow today than yesterday! It was painful yesterday! Then the nurse offered her a little of her smoothie (colored blue by the speech therapist) and she loved that as well. Tomorrow the menu is blue macaroni and cheese :) As they deflated the cuff in her throat to do this swallowing test, she once again was able to get air through the vocal cords and produce some more voice sounds. She then told her mom "I am going to sing again!"

Kari sat on the side of the bed with therapy and nurses this morning, felt "SO WEIRD!" according to Kari, and had an expected small change in her blood pressure. They will do this again tomorrow. She does tolerate the head of the bed being up quite high. They have a bed here that allows the feet to drop down into sort of a large chair position-very cool, and she tolerates that well too.

More tubes/IV's and stuff came out today and last night (which is a good thing). Her pneumonia is better and the chest tube should come out tomorrow. She does not have the pain she had across her chest two days ago and her elbow pain from yesterday is gone today! Miracle upon miracle! She does fatique quickly and needs to rest often. She also needs to get her body back on a day/night schedule, so she can sleep through the night and be awake more of the day, especially when she goes to rehab.

Aaron has finished visiting rehab centers in CA today and is on his way back tonight. Continue to pray for clear direction with this decision. I told Kari yesterday that Aaron is doing such a great job with all of this. She agreed, smiled and said "He is so positive! He was the perfect man for me to marry!" Their love for each other was a huge thing for Kari when she was trapped under the car as well. She saw the angels there, they were a comfort to her, and helped her to breathe. She also knew she did not want to go with the angels and told them so. She wanted to stay here with Aaron. (Are you getting choked up and holding your breath? I am as I type it.)

Another exciting moment of the day happened this afternoon when John was alone with Kari. As she was talking to him, the ventilator hose popped off her trach! Alarms started to sound, reds light flashed, there was a loud whooshing sound from the detached ventilator hose, Kari's eyes got big and John thought he was going into heart failure :) He quickly determined that tube A fits onto tube B, and he simply put it back together! He still does not find this episode as funny as the rest of us do. He keeps holding his chest when he tells it :)

Well, the library here is closing so I have to leave. Thank you for continuing to pray! There are so many small mountains for Kari and Aaron to climb and we are thankful for every one she has surmounted this far with God's miraculous touch!

Update by Shona Fowler

Hope and Updates

     I reported last night that Kari squeezed some hands with her right hand.  Evidently, that may not be quite right.  We're not sure.  We are trying to be accurate so as not to raise false hopes.  Then again our hope is not really based on each event, though we grasp every little positive thing we can and are overjoyed at every sign of progress.  Our hope is in God.  Through progress, waiting, even the set backs, we take comfort in God's love and power.

     We will be travelling to Denver tomorrow but will try to continue these updates from computers at the hospital.  The following detailed update comes from Shona Fowler who was with Kari today:

"I just spoke with Aaron and took some notes so I could try to accurately communicate Kari's progress today.  It is a privilege to be able to be here with Kari. She is such a trooper!  Her spirits remain good. She is so positive and encouraging with everyone and is working very hard. The nurses are requesting to continue to care for her, even though they are supposed to rotate to another floor, because they want to get to know her better! Even other patient family members are asking about her and commenting on how wonderful she must be! We can all
confirm that!

"Today I was moving her right arm around and she was able to twist (pronate) her right forearm, between the elbow and the wrist from a thumbs up position to a palm down position several times! This is the first day she could do this movement! She also is continuing to bend both elbows (right stronger than left), and has some shoulder movement, too. When lying on the bed or semi-reclined, if support is given at her elbow, wrist and hand, she can help lift her right arm up, rotate her arm in and out, and extend her shoulder to pull her arm down towards the bed. If the bed is up higher, gravity makes it harder for her to move and she fatiques quickly.

"Today the speech therapists put some blue food coloring on her tongue and had her work on swallowing it. They wanted to see if the saliva and food coloring would go down the right tube in to her stomach and not into her lungs. Kari could tell she was able to swallow it and when they
suctioned out the trach tube later to check, there was not any blue coloring in it!  We were all very excited! Tomorrow they will try pudding or applesauce (she preferred chocolate pudding) and if that goes well, they will try liquids next. They deflated a balloon in her throat to do this swallow test, and as a result of that, she could get enough air through her vocal cords (and
mouth) to produce a weak voice! She said she was trying to use some of her high school and college vocal training to isolate the air better through her cords to increase the voice volume. She did so great! She got to do this for around 10 minutes and the speech therapists were very
impressed.  Later the surgeon stated he is very optimistic she will eventually be able to have the trach removed and since the trach is well below the "voice box" he did not express significant concern about her voice after the trach removal.

"The surgeon also stated the spinal incision is healing well, the sutures will come out tonight, and if she promises to limit her neck turning right and left, she can leave the neck collar open in the front when she is lying in bed. She promised to be very good and apologized for her vigorous head shaking right and left recently. (I don't think any of us realized she needed to limit her neck movement a little more than she was, while she was wearing the neck brace.) After a little while with it off, she wanted the head of the bed up further so she requested to have the front of it strapped back on. It is just so nice to have that option!  The staff and care here are excellent. Aaron stated the surgeon is one of the best The analogy he and Derin came up with is this suirgeon is to spinal cord surgery as Derek Jeter is to shortstops in baseball.

"Kari is initiating all of her breaths today and the ventilator continues to give her pressure support which apparently makes it easier to take a deeper breath. They are planning to continue to decrease the amount of pressure support from the ventilator as they can, which will help wean her off the ventilator. She has significantly less secretions today, is swallowing
better and needs little or no suctioning.  Kari told me earlier this morning she was able to have a long talk with her brother Dustin (around an hour and a half) and she was so thankful for
that opportunity!  She stated they have a long road ahead of them, and it was so nice to talk and hang out for so long, one on one.  Later this morning, Aaron was explaining to her what he observed in his tour of Craig rehab unit.  He listed all the programs, the facilities, etc, and
stated they had a church there they could attend. She shook her head "no".  When he asked why, she stated she wanted to start her own church there.  Isn't that just like Kari! She is already figuring out how and where she will be able to continue to minister to others!  Aaron also made her smile when he stated they will need to get some sort of 4 wheel drive wheelchair or other vehicle so they can continue to go out into the national parks of California they love so much.

"Early this afternoon Kari wanted to tell me the details of the accident as she could remember them. I can't include them all here.  Aaron is creating a timeline to be posted on the website, but she did clearly see two angels with her there under the car, smiling at her and comforting her.

"Thank you for all your prayers and emails!  Again, she loves all the emails and asks us to read them to her.  Aaron will be leaving tonight to check out the rehab unit in CA.  Please continue to pray for God's clear direction in the rehab unit decision, for healing, for health benefit coverage and for Aaron's sick leave benefit concerns.

Also, keep praying for all those currently here on site:  Jerry and Karen Morris, Aaron, Dustin Morris, Sarah (Kari's friend from her church in CA), Derin and Shona, John Fusek, and Pastor Rick from Kari's church (he just arrived!). Everyone is so supportive and helpful!"

As of Wednesday, July 27

Via weloveyoukari.org:

Kari is doing well. Her spirits remain good. She is so positive and encouraging with everyone and is working very hard. The nurses are requesting to continue to care for her, even though they are supposed to rotate to another floor, because they want to get to know her better! Even other patient family members are asking about her and commenting on how wonderful she must be! We can all confirm that!

Today, I was moving her right arm around and she was able to twist (pronate) her right forearm, between the elbow and the wrist from a thumbs up position to a palm down position several times! This is the first day she could do this movement! She also is continuing to bend both elbows (right stronger than left), and has some shoulder movement, too. When lying on the bed or semi-reclined, if support is given at her elbow, wrist and hand, she can help lift her right arm up, rotate her arm in and out, and extend her shoulder to pull her arm down towards the bed. If the bed is up higher, gravity makes it harder for her to move and she fatiques quickly.

Today the speech therapists put some blue food coloring on her tongue and had her work on swallowing it. They wanted to see if the saliva and food coloring would go down the right tube in to her stomach and not into her lungs. Kari could tell she was able to swallow it and when they suctioned out the trach tube later to check, there was not any blue coloring in it! We were all very excited! Tomorrow they will try pudding or applesauce (she preferred chocolate pudding) and if that goes well, they will try liquids next. They deflated a balloon in her throat to do this swallow test, and as a result of that, she could get enough air through her vocal cords (and mouth) to produce a weak voice! She said she was trying to use some of her high school and college vocal training to isolate the air better through her cords to increase the voice volume. She did so great! She got to do this for around 10 minutes and the speech therapists were very impressed. Later the surgeon stated he is very optimistic she will eventually be able to have the trach removed and since the trach is well below the "voice box" he did not express significant concern about her voice after the trach removal. (This is an incredible comfort to her and others who have experienced Kari's beautiful singing voice.)

The surgeon also stated the spinal incision is healing well, the sutures will come out tonight, and if she promises to limit her neck turning right and left, she can leave the neck collar open in the front when she is lying in bed. She promised to be very good and apologized for her vigorous head shaking right and left recently. (I don't think any of us realized she needed to limit her neck movement a little more than she was, while she was wearing the neck brace.) After a little while with it off, she wanted the head of the bed up further so she requested to have the front of it strapped back on. It is just so nice to have that option!

Kari is initiating all of her breaths today and the ventilator continues to give her pressure support which apparently makes it easier to take a deeper breath. They are planning to continue to decrease the amount of pressure support from the ventilator as they can, which will help wean her off the ventilator. She has significantly less secretions today, is swallowing better and needs little or no suctioning.

This morning, Aaron was explaining to her what he observed in his tour of Craig rehab unit. He listed all the programs, the facilities, etc, and stated they had a church there they could attend. She shook her head"no". When he asked why, she stated she wanted to start her own church there. Isn't that just like Kari! She is already figuring out how and where she will be able to continue to minister to others! Aaron also made her smile when he stated they will need to get some sort of 4 wheel drive wheelchair or other vehicle so they can continue to go out into the national parks of California they love so much.

Early this afternoon Kari wanted to tell the details of the accident as she could remember them. I can't include them all here, Aaron is creating a timeline to be posted on the website, but she did clearly see two angels with her there under the car, smiling at her and comforting her.

Update by Shona Fowler

Angels among us

     Kari had her tracheotomy today and is doing much better.  She's more alert now that she is not fighting the tube going down her throat, and she can communicate much more easily.  She told her Mom today that when she was under the car she had a vision of two angels craddling her neck.  Aaron and one of her nurses also report that they have felt Kari squeeze their hands back with her right hand.  How large the world is that operates behind the everyday world we usually sense.

     Aaron reports that he is leaning towards moving Kari back to California for her rehab.  He will fly there in a day or so to check out rehab centers.  We will travel back to Denver this Thursday and spend the weekend there.  Many others have come and gone, and many plan trips to wherever Kari rehabs to help support both her and Aaron.  Please pray for travelling mercies for all involved.  What comes to mind now is Jacob's vision of a ladder to heaven and angels travelling up and down on it, so that the going to and fro that we see with our eyes is dwarfed by the flow and travelling in a spiritual world we seldom see.  Think of that spiritual world, God's vast spirit and God's legion of angels, focused on that small area of the fifth vertebra.  It is an awesome, healing thought.

 

--Richard R. Guzman     

Waiting--Part 2

     ...Sorry, but my hand strayed for a moment and my posting for tonight got sent before it was finished.  Ironic, since I was talking about waiting.  Things could become clear at any moment, I suppose, but not today.  We are told to wait on the Lord.  Sometimes this seems to put us in a floating, limbo world, but we feel that behind this world something is being directed, pieces are being put together.  Pray that Aaron, especially, will have ears to hear and eyes to see when some guidance emerges from this waiting time.  Pray that Kari feels a purpose and direction taking form behind these hours and hours of waiting.

 

--Richard R. Guzman

Waiting

     Today Kari was supposed to have a tracheotomy, but scheduling problems have put it off until tomorrow.  There was some thought that they would not do one because she was showing good signs of breathing on her own, but it appears that they will go ahead just in case complications come up in the next month.

     So Kari's family and Aaron and all of us wait.  There are big decisions to be made, like where Kari's rehab will take place.  Doors close and open, insurance requirements become clear then go fuzzy, one rehab center seems best, then another; and all in all there doesn't seem to be enough information yet to chose decisively. 

Keep Praying

     Kari breathed on her own for about 10 hours today, but because that was tiring, she is now back on the ventilator for the night.  Monday she is scheduled for a tracheotomy, though there is some talk that if she seems to be strong enough, the doctors may consider not doing one.  It takes a few days to a few weeks for someone to be weaned off the ventilator, however, and so they will probably go ahead.  This will allow them to remove the big tubes that have been going down Kari's throat.  These are very irritating and have caused her much pain and frustration ever since she came to the hospital.  These have caused so much agitation that they have had to keep her more sedated than they, or the family, would like.  On the whole, the tracheotomy is probably a better, safer idea, though it would be wonderful not to have to have one.

     Jan Hirschy of Richland Center, WI, said she appreciated these updates because it helped them to pray.  There are so many forms that can help focus our prayers.  At the St. Charles church Friday night, pastor Derin Fowler used the ACTS form: adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication.  Sometimes our pastor at Friendship UMC, Rev. Jaimie Hanna Williams, will use a centering prayer based on concentrating on our breath and body.  In this case in particular that might also help us focus.  As you pray relax and be aware of your breath; then focus especially on your upper spinal cord.  Pray and imagine Kari's spinal cord renewing and healing at the C5 vertebra, then imagine this renewing, this healing moving downward to the cord enclosed by the C6 vertebra and lower and lower.  Ask the God who created us, saved us, and sustains us to meet Kari just there at the place of her injury and heal it, moving with renewing, wakening mercy downward inch by inch, millimeter by millimeter.

     These are just techniques, of course.  Though they are good and profound ones, they must be driven by our earnestness, by our love for God and Kari, by the deep trust of children approaching a gracious parent.  Abba, Father, we say and put our faith there.  Thank you for praying so earnestly no matter how you are moved to do so.

 

--Richard R. Guzman           

Good news

     This morning they took Kari off the ventilator to see if she could breathe on her own.  They tried this a couple of days ago, and she couldn't.  But this morning she could!  The ventilator is still hooked up giving her support, but she's mainly on her own.  What thanks we must give for this day.

     Be bold in asking God for healing.  Last night at the St. Charles church I asked God to give us just one more inch of renewed spinal cord, and said after that I would come back to ask for another inch, and another, and another....  The Word invites us to be bold.  He knows our hearts: that we ask like children who don't know much, can't do much, and trust in His wisdom, not ours.  God's love calls us to ask and ask again.  Thank you all for your prayers.

 

--Richard R. Guzman 

Thanks to everyone

 

     This is Aaron's Dad.  We knew that Kari and Aaron were loved, but the depth and breadth of that love is truly overwhelming and larger than even we imagined.  Thank you all.  For now let me send a special thanks to Cindy Miller, who made us all dinner one night, and to Pastor Jim Gallanaugh of the Cornerstone Free Methodist Church in Englewood, and youth pastor Ryan Ward of the Light and Life Free Methodist Church in Aurora (both suburbs of Denver).  Ryan brought us all lunch and a wonderful spirit, and Jim put us in contact with Ken and Janice Corns, members of his church.  When the Corns heard what had happened they said they would pray about how they could help us.  Then they called me to say they would move out into their camper and all the family and their guests could just have their whole house to stay in for a while.  "Help yourselves to all the food and coffee, and we'll try not to bother you too much," they said!  We are debters to Christ and to all in His body who have extended such kindness to us. 

     From the moment we heard of the accident I felt certain that God would heal Kari completely somehow, some way.  This is the saddest thing we have ever seen, yet we can live with great expectation, knowing this healing will happen in His time.  He loves us so much.  Again, thank you all for everything you are doing for Kari and Aaron.

     --Richard R. Guzman 

Needed: Your thoughts and prayers

The outpouring of support shown to Kari and Aaron so far has been overwhelming. This morning I spoke with Aaron, who said that people have come from all corners of their lives to wish him and Kari well. This means so much to them. Thanks to everyone for that.

However, this is a long battle and everyone's continued support is going to be critical. If you're reading this and would like to let Kari and Aaron know that they are in your thoughts and prayers, please take a moment to comment on this post and let them know.

Blake Engel

Update as of Wednesday

Kari is stable and making small steps. The doctors are hoping to take her off of the ventilator within 7-10 days and try to build her strength so that she can breath on her own. She can raise her right arm without assistance and can raise her left arm with a little help. She can also do shoulder shrugs on her own.

Cognitively, Kari is doing very well. She breaks into a big smile whenever she sees new people and every time that she sees Aaron. She is awake for probably 5 minutes every couple hours and has a lot to say. She is communicating by either lip reading (which nobody but Linda seems to be very good at) or using a letter board.

She was awakened by the nurse when she pricked her left finger which is a great sign that she has sensation in that area. The doctors are saying that the swelling of the spinal cord starts to subside three days after surgery which means it should be soon.
Aaron thanks you all for your prayers and continued support.

Rob Ridenour

General Information

On Sunday, July 17, Aaron and Kari were driving through Kansas coming from a wedding. They were traveling to Omaha to visit Kari's family.

On a two lane highway, a car in front of them quickly slowed down to turn left. In an effort to avoid the car, they swerved off the road into a ditch. They were riding in a rented convertible, which flipped when they hit the ditch. Aaron escaped with minor injuries (cuts and bruises) but unfortunately Kari suffered a broken neck and spinal cord damage at C5.

She was airlifted to Denver where she underwent spinal cord surgery Sunday night. The surgery was very successful and the doctors are hoping that they have set up her spinal cord for some regeneration. The next two weeks will be critical in determining the recovery. Please pray for Aaron and Kari as they endure this difficult time.