Our annual Scottish Rite visit

Many of you remember how we spent Christmas 2005: with Rachael in the ICU for about three weeks with a sudden and severe blood disorder.

Last year Rachael, Robert, and I brought a lunch platter to the the PICU waiting room and visited with both the staff and current families who were in the waiting room.

It looks like this will be turning into a yearly tradition for us, because yesterday my parents watched Baby Ben while the rest of us went. (Rebecca really wanted to join us this year.)

On the car ride over, Rachael said, "I'm special." [Because she came close to dying, but was saved.]

Rebecca immediately became indignant. "I'm special too!" she said. "Barney says everybody is special!"

Rachael replied, calmly and wisely, "Yes, everybody is special. But I'm more special than you."

Rebecca didn't like that much, either.




This is Rachael with one the PICU nurses who remembered us. Most of the staff from our stay are gone now.



Here's Rachael and Rebecca in front of the lunch we brought to the waiting room. One of the PICU staff let each girl pick a stuffed animal. Rachael named her bear Pinky, and Rebecca named hers Hannah.




This is Rachael in the PICU hallway. Some of you remember this well: the rooms are on the right, and the waiting room is on the left.

Rachael made cards, even using photos and scrapbooking tools, for two of her doctors, the Red Cross, her favorite nurse, and one card "to a girl" and one card "to a boy." She gave those last two cards to parents we met in the waiting room. Rebecca made some things as well.

Both last year and yesterday, I thought the parents we spoke with had a distinct way about them that was familiar yet hard to put into words. One possible way -- although this isn't quite right -- is "polite but distracted." Robert suggested "fuzzy."

It's hard to explain how it feels to go back. It's difficult, and strangely tiring, although a little fun and exciting at the same time, but it feels important somehow.