I bet you're wondering just what does my husband and Captain America have in common? Well, for one, you see, they both have received the miracle of second chances. Not everyone gets a second chance at life, but my Lenny did and so did Captain America. On February 17, 2014, my Lenny was resuscitated, placed in a coma, his body temperature lowered and given a second chance at life. Not a second chance to make up for mistakes or a second chance with a relationship, but a second chance at life itself. So, we are celebrating my husband's re-birthday. If it's good enough for Captain America, it's good enough for my Lenny!
See, Lenny's birthday is really November 20, and although I am so thrilled that he was born, I'm even more thrilled that he was given a second chance to live. Lenny, honestly, thinks it's kind of silly, but he is my little (or not so little) walking miracle and I am so very grateful for every single day that we have together.
{The below image is printable at 8-½" x 11". Just right-click on the image and select Print.}
I am blessed. I know. Truly blessed. I can honestly say that I love my husband and he loves me. And you know what else? We "like" one another. We really like one another! Now, how many couples our age (or even younger) can say they actually like their spouse? But, wait, there's more. I not only like Lenny, but I love spending time with him (and I think he loves spending time with me).
But, back to why we are celebrating my husband's "re-birthday". See, Lenny and I work for our local school district and we had a three-day weekend (President's Day). Our son Phillip was stationed at Fort Drum in Watertown, New York, at the time and we decided to go visit him. Lenny suddenly started not feeling well on Sunday evening. We had Chinese takeout for dinner and Lenny was sure it was something he ate. As the evening went on, he felt worse. So, we called it a night and went back to our hotel. Lenny just didn't feel like himself and went to bed.
He barely slept that night and literally drug himself out of bed so we could begin our eight-hour drive back home. I drove and Lenny just continued to feel worse. I stopped at a Tim Horton's off the New York Thruway to get Lenny something to drink. By the time I returned to the car, Lenny said he was having problems with his vision. I tried to get him to let me call 9-1-1 (why did I listen to him???), but he kept saying no. I finally convinced him to at least let me drive towards the closest hospital and then if he was feeling better, we'd continue our trip home. If not, then at least we'd be at the hospital.
So I searched for "hospital" with my trusty Garmin GPS and off I headed for the hospital. We "arrived" to the location but it was not a hospital. It was indeed a pediatrician's office. By this point, Lenny could not even open his eyes or hardly support himself upright in the car seat. He insisted he needed to get out of the car. I got out of the car and went to assist him, but he collapsed right there in the parking lot. I ran inside the doctor's office and asked for help. They called 9-1-1 and a couple of nurses and the pediatrician came running out to the car, along with their defibrillator.
The ambulance arrived literally within minutes and they took Lenny to Strong Memorial Hospital at the University of Rochester. Lenny suffered a cardiac arrest in the emergency room and I literally stood there watching them perform CPR on him for 30 minutes. He was then rushed to the heart cath lab where he suffered another arrest. Afterwards, he was put in a medically induced coma and underwent the Arctic Sun protocol (therapeutic hypothermia protocol).
I was told that Lenny had about a 5% chance of surviving and that if he did survive, he would probably never be the same. The doctor's were sure he had suffered brain and neurological damage. But, my Lenny is strong and a fighter and "indestructible" (his words, not mine). On February 22, 2014, as I'm sitting in Lenny's CICU room, I look up and Lenny s l o w l y turns his head towards me and says, "Pam, what's wrong with me?" His words were weak, mumbled and not distinct at all. I jumped out of my chair and ran to his bed side. I touched him and told him that he was in the hospital, but that he was going to be okay because the doctors and nurses were taking really good care of him. I told him we were still in New York (we live in Ohio) and that the kids were all okay.
I knew Lenny would be worried about the kids and our dog Remo. I just kept reassuring him that he was okay, the kids were okay, and even our dog Remo was okay. I assured him the doctors were taking really good care of him, but that it was just going to take time for him to get well.
My Lenny walked out of that hospital on March 1, 2014. He was still weak and had a few little complications, but after a couple of months he was better than ever. I told you, my Lenny is strong and determined (although I call him "stubborn"). You absolutely would not know to simply look at him that he had ever been so seriously ill. So, maybe now you'll understand why sometimes re-birthdays offer even more reasons to celebrate than birthdays! In any event, we'll be celebrating my husband's re-birthday again this year.
Now, there's a second thing that my husband and Captain America have in common. They both were re-born in the state of New York. Marvel Comics gave Captain America a second chance at life in Brooklyn, New York. Strong Memorial Hospital gave my Lenny a second chance at life in Rochester, New York.
{Below is a pinnable image, in case you'd like to save it to Pinterest!}
I'm sure my Lenny and Captain America have many other similarities (like strength of character, trustworthiness, integrity...), but the one most important thing they both have in common is the second chance they were given at life.
Til next time...
