Poems, Prayers and Promises

Doubt . It'sa very real part ofour nature ashuman beings.AsChristians,we know we have no reason to doubt. However ... at times ... it sneaks up on us.

Isthere really a God whocan intervene in this world? Areanyone's prayers doing any good?

Well,God putallofthose doubts aside in 1988 for the faculty and students of Liberty University

In 1985, yearbook advisor and Professor Mikie Survant andhiswifeSuehaddecided tostarttheir family However, medical problems delayed that beginning until the springof 1988. Itwas then they announced their first child would arrive in mid-November.There wasacertain air ofexcitement about thewhole thing

The excitement died down and people settled back intotheirroutines.Mikie kept everyone's attention focused on theNov 18 duedate.

However, on Saturday, Sept.24,things changed Sue went into labor early that morning. Mikie took hertoVirginia BaptistHospital where they triedtostop labor to give the baby more time to develop Doctors watched a fetal monitor carefully and observed the baby's heart was not reacting correctly.

An ultrasound revealed the possibility the baby had a life-threatening condition called hydrops and a chance of a threechambered heart. Itwasdecided to move mother andchild tothe University of Virginia hospital where the potential problems could be better dealt with

Sue wasairlifted by helicopter to UVA inCharlottesville,VA. There wasno room on theflight forMikie He made the onehour trip by car with Dave and Debbie Flemming.

Physicians attheUVA hospital continued the efforttostop the delivery.Despite the strongest drug for the purpose,iittle Bethany was born at dawn on Sunday morning,Sept.25.Doctors gave the baby a zero percent chance oflivingthroughthe birth.

The littlelife, however,hung inthe balance Over three pounds ofher 7-pound-2ounce birth weight wasfluid.One minute after birth,shewasgiven a zero APGAR score

APGAR scores evaluate a baby's vital functions, such as breathing and heart rate Normal scores range from 4 to 6

Four minutes later, herscore was still zero. Most babies have reached a7bythattime. Finally,after ten minutes,Bethany's score was bumped up to a4.

Doctors explained Bethany's condition to thenew parents ashydrops Surrounding the heart was a pair of cysts. This slowed theheart rate,inturn slowing the blood flow through the kidneys. Fluid, which normally would have been drained

Sue. They knew many people werepraying and they watched thefirstmiracle of life, the birth oftheirbaby Then they watched the second — their baby lived and kept living.

"It isonething toknow howto pray It isanother thing todoit. But towatchGod answer prayers,tofeel them and the love of people is— just — marvelous."

However, the doctors were stillsaying "if in the matter of Bethany's going home. Forthree weeks after her birthday, they were still notoptimistic.

The days rolled by Bethany hadher good days and hernot-so-good days. The many friends on theLiberty campuswaited and kept praying

For the Survants, it was day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute Stress and fatigue dampened their spirits, but never their hope. It wasa continualwaiting

Mikie began commuting between Charlottesvilleand Lynchburg tomeet with his photography classes Sue moved into the Ronald McDonald House atCharlottesville tostay close to Bethany.

As time rolled around, the doctors changed their "ifs"— to"whens."

The Survants readied themselves for Bethany's homecoming around Thanksgiving. Doctors would wait until she was three-years-old toremove thecysts They prepared Mikie and Suetodeal withoxygen and tube-feeding,a newpartof Bethany's home life until theoperation

Miss Bethany Survant at Christmas 1988 by thebody, built up Infants who suffer from thecondition usually have a mortality rate as high as 98 percent. Doctors were notoptimistic

The prayers for Bethany's life began. Faculty and students prayed. The members of Thomas Road Baptist Church prayed. Members of Lynchburg area churches prayed. The word spread, and very soon various churches across the nation began to pray for one little life in Virginia

"We believe it was divine ijitervention," Sue said. "Itwas as if we could feelthe prayers and seethem answered."

Expressing their experience was not something that came easily to Mikie and

However, things began tochange dramatically Herbreathing became labored Her color turned gray Doctors feltthey could notwait to remove thecysts.They would have to perform thefour-houroperation atonce.

On Dec. 8, she had surgery. Again, there wasa barrage ofprayers onher behalf. After anhour-and-a-half,the doctors emerged — smiling. The cysts,contained intwoorange-size pouches,were removed easily. They were notentangled with the heart and lung as feared Doctors were jubilant.This little one had made history shewas a one-in-10,000 baby.

Bethany recovered inonly a week-anda-half. The "oxygen and tube" planwas abandoned.

Eleven days later, Bethany came — home. The Survants — Mikie, Sue and Bethany — were a family

/ cried today — my water broke and the baby is coming early— weeks . .. months early.Doesn't the baby realizeI still need time together room ready?I haven'tbought her bed yet orgotten diapersor hung new curtains

/ criedtoday — my long-awaited,cherished baby is a girland they said she was sick,very sick. Gone are the thoughts of holding her,kissing her,hearing hercry now my thoughtsarefilledwith the words they don't say death fatal

/ cried today — 1 saw my baby for the firsttime. Gone are the thoughts of holding her — you see, they repeatedly say, "Your daughter is sick, very sick." I didn't know so many needles and lines and monitors could beattached tosuch a smalllife she looks so frail and onceagain I am toldshe is sick, very sick

/ cried today — my baby isone day old Will she ever be two — two daysold? I don'tcare who shelookslike orhow much hairshehas— she's alive

/ criedtoday — we took our first picture of our baby ... is it our last?

Who,you ask, are theothersinthe picture with the baby — no, it's not her mother, father, relatives or friends — they are nursesand doctors,I think sometime soon I'm sure I'll know who they are and hopefully sometime soon we'll have pictures of the baby and us but they told me again,your baby issick,very sick

/ criedtoday — I heard a baby cry — will I ever hear my baby cry?

/ criedtoday — I saw someone holding a baby will Iever hold mine?

/ cried today — they said I can go home now — will Iever be able to take my baby home — you see they keep telling me,your baby issick,very sick. ...

I criedtoday — I was able to touch her hand

/ cried today — I was able tofinda spot without linesor f.V.'sand Ikissed her — so she's five day's old — 1kissed her.Does she know how much Ilove her? How much 1want to hold her,kiss her,touch her yes,doctor,Iknow she issick,very sick

/ cried today — the nurse said my baby's kidneys started working a few hours ago

Sue Survant

/ criedtoday — she'sa week old — seven days — will she ever be seven years?

/ criedtoday — nobody told me today that sheis sick,very sick

/ cried today — she lookssomuch better Isaw her eyes,such beautiful eyes . . .

/ criedtoday — someone takingcareofmy daughtersaid, "When you take her home " Does that mean someday I really can take her home?

/ criedtoday — I know you can treatherinfection

... I know theother babieshave thistube insertedin her mother's arms — they looked so happy

I criedtoday I overheard a mother complaining because her baby cried last night and kept her up. Will Iever hear my baby cry?

/ cried today —

/ criedtoday — they said Icould hold her today!

What a way to celebrate her 20th day!She feelsso small — Oh,how wonderful to have her in my arms.

/ criedtoday — the firstthing the nurse said was that Icouldn't hold her today,you see Ihave a sick baby, a very sick baby 1 stillhave the memory that I held her before why can't that be enough . . .

/ cried today — they told me to do something

How do you explain how even when you aren't with your baby, your heart is?

How do you explain what itfeelslike to have to ask permission to see your baby?

How do you explain what it feels like when they tellyou you can't see your baby now because another baby is coming near yours and you'llbein theway and you only have fifteen minutes before you have to leave town for the day . . .

How do you explain why you cry and cry when your baby has a good day or a bad week

How do you explain why you cry for the parents of the baby who was beside your'sand died last night. It doesn't matter that you never saw or met the baby's parents their chests — but you see thisismy firstbaby — I never dreamed her firstweek could be likethis You tellme thishappens allthe time to babies in NICU. But I never even heard of NICU until the baby started coming eight weeks early

Icriedtoday I was ina restaurantand I heard a buzzer

/ criedtoday — I was walking down thestreet and I heard an ambulance

/ criedtoday — I saw a baby leave the hospitalin

How do you explain how you feelwhen you see your daughter has another new nurse — does the nurse know when my baby starts tofidgetshe wants her diaper changed, her pacifier, or she needs suctioning — even if she was suctioned twice in thelast hour — does this nurse know that ifshe fusses and doesn't stop after the verifying of the routine things are ok,that itmeans something major is wrong. Like when her lung collapsed or the fluid builtup and put pressure on her heart and lungs

How do you explain how you feel when you see everything your precious daughter isgoing through and yetyou know she may be inthe hospital fighting to live for weeks ifnot months to come

How do you explain why you cried today?