Sunday Wrap Up--June 20, 2021

The big news of the past few weeks in our family is that Shane and Dorcas are expecting a baby girl.  The wee one has four older brothers, so this is a much-anticipated prospect.  A sonogram last week showed a strong heartbeat, which was another cause for rejoicing.  This good news was especially welcome after some concerning possibilities showed up on the previous sonogram, at 20 weeks gestation.  

The biggest item of concern is that a large (7 cm) chorioangioma was discovered.  This is a non-malignant tumor of the placenta.  Sometimes babies suffer no ill effects when this condition is present, and sometimes it's fatal to the baby--depending on how large the tumor is and how "greedy" it gets for the available blood supply.  The only intervention the doctor has mentioned so far as a possibility is inducing labor if signs of distress show up.  Late in the pregnancy, this is not as grim a prospect as it would be now, of course.     

Many prayers are being offered on this baby's behalf.  Dorcas' transparency is inspiring, and she posted the good news and the concerns on Facebook with just the right tone of anticipation and vulnerability involved in the balancing act that the realities call for.  

For now, scans will be performed every two weeks.  During the third trimester, the interval will be reduced to one scan each week. That's a lot of trips to Wichita to see a specialist.

Sometime in the near future, the results will be available for a blood test for Down Syndrome.  This test was done since a few (two) characteristics consistent with Down Syndrome were observed on the first sonogram.   Laughing about this as I did is probably not considered a typical response--and I didn't laugh right away, but hear me out.

The two things noted as potential DS indicators are characteristics that my perfectly normal Asian husband also possesses.  He also possesses one more that's on the list, but this baby does not have that third one--or any of the other five non-Asian characteristics that appeared on the list I saw.  The specialist, however, was very firm in stating that "these are not Asian characteristics."  I'm thinking maybe she knows and maybe she doesn't. God knows, so we'll keep right on talking to Him about this--receiving the hope and peace that He gives.  His presence is guaranteed in any case. 

I realized very quickly that this baby will be welcomed and cherished with or without Down syndrome.  I also thought right away of a Facebook friend of mine who has several children with Down Syndrome, only one of them being homemade.  She's very convinced that Down Syndrome is a gift, and she truly delights in all of her children--four of whom were adopted with pre-existing handicaps.

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Our eight-year-old granddaughter has volunteered as a test subject for one of the Covid vaccines for children.  She has received one injection.  Since it's a double-blind trial, neither those administering the vaccine or the one receiving it know whether she's getting a placebo or the real thing.  Collecting data through phone calls and blood draws are part of the trial process. 

Our son heard about the possibility of participating in the trial and thought it would be a wonderful thing for his children to have a part in it.  The children's mother wasn't so sure, so nothing was said to the children.  Then a  young friend spoke of it with great excitement because she already had plans to participate.  At that point, the oldest granddaughter begged to be able to join the trial "to help America."  After talking through how many needle sticks that meant (at which point the younger sister bowed out), and reminding her that it would not help just Americans, and securing an agreement that the daddy would be the one shouldering the responsibility of providing transportation, etc.  the deal was made.  Off they went to Newton several days later.  

It so happens that there's some hefty financial incentive for participation also.  I'm not sure that the granddaughter knows how this will be handled, but her parents have plans to tuck most of it away for her to access in the future.

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My sister Lois is expecting her first two grandchildren in the near future--the children of Hans and Heidi.  Both of them are local, so we're all getting a chance to share in the excitement.  

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Wheat harvest has been in full swing during the past week.  With one hot dry day after another, anyone who could escape equipment problems got a good shot at getting the "gold" into a bin.  There's a chance of rain tonight.  A very welcome cool-down is on the way as well.

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Today is the summer solstice.  I watched the sun go down tonight and noted the features on the horizon that lined up with the "sinking" spot.  I've done this throughout the year.  

I don't recall ever seeing the exact figure, but I estimate that if I were to stand facing straight west and point my right arm to the summer solstice sunset spot and my left arm to the winter solstice spot, my arms would be spread at something approximating a 90-degree angle--maybe less.  

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I have some very striking tall red-leaved plants growing in my garden from seeds that I scattered last fall and this spring.  The seeds came from amaranth plants that were growing at the demonstration garden on the Hutchinson Community College campus last summer.  

At HCC the plants always reseeded very enthusiastically in the former Thomas Jefferson garden area.  In other words, the seeds originally had been acquired as part of a collection of seeds gathered from the gardens of Thomas Jefferson at Monticello.  Sally, a Master Gardener, had nurtured the garden until that area became the cutting garden area.  Those annual red-leaved plants came back every year since then from seeds dropped the year before. 

Our daughter-in-law, Hilda, noticed the plants in my garden and observed how much they looked like the red "greens" they used to eat in Bangladesh.  There, they were called lalshak.  I knew that amaranth leaves could be cooked and used like spinach, so it seemed safe enough to try eating them.  Hilda took some home and prepared them as she was used to eating lalshak, and the whole family was delighted to taste this favorite familiar dish again.  Hiromi and I have eaten some since and liked it too.  

I think it's remarkable that Thomas Jefferson and Bangladesh are meeting in my Kansas garden.

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 Grant and Clarissa's house is teeming with the activity of six little "Prettyman" boys.  Clare and her sister Tara each have three boys, and Tara is here for a visit from Washington state.

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My sister-in-law Judy has a brother Mark who is battling Covid in Costa Rica.  He has been hospitalized with Covid pneumonia.  

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A group of local bikers are headed west now, with the culmination of the trip occurring at the top of Pikes Peak.  This is happening in lieu of the annual Bike Across Kansas that was canceled for the second year in a row.  

I might worry less about this trip if I didn't know about Hiromi's niece's experience with a run up Pike's Peak.  She collapsed partway up, despite being a very experienced runner who has run double marathons.  With a medical crew providing oxygen, she limped along a little farther till she reached the point where she would be provided a ride to the bottom.  Otherwise, she would have needed to walk down, and she couldn't think of doing that.  

Starting out in triple digit temps was surely not much fun.

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Carol, Shari, and Braden are headed to Greece to work in a refugee camp for several weeks.  Braden's parents and siblings will be going to Pennsylvania where Arlyn plans to teach during summer term at Faith Builders.

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Lil Nisly is suffering from some paralysis on one side of her face, resulting in the normal eye-blinking reflex going on vacation.  This dehydrates her cornea and calls for various interventions at different times.  Eye drops applied at frequent intervals, lying down with eyes closed, and at night taping the eye shut are measures I've heard about.  

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Many of the situations that I've mentioned are prayer concerns.  Thank you for joining in this prayer effort.