When Carolyn put her 20 ounce baby on her chest for a cuddle, she thought that it would be the only chance she would ever have to hold her. Doctors had told the parents that baby Rachel only had only minutes to live because her heart was beating once every ten seconds and she was not breathing.
Carolyn said, " I didn’t want her to die being cold. So I lifted her out of her blanket and put her up against my skin to warm her up. Her feet were so cold. I believed that it would be the only cuddle I was going to have with her, so I wanted to remember the moment.” Then something remarkable happened. Within seconds the warmth of her mother’s skin started Rachael’s heart beating properly, which allowed her to take little breaths of her own. No one could believe it – and neither could the doctors. She let out a tiny cry.
"The doctors came running in and reached for her – but I wasn’t letting go of her. We had her blessed by the hospital chaplain, and waited for her to slip away. But she still hung on." And then amazingly the pink color began to return to her cheeks. She literally was turning from gray to pink before our eyes.
So much was happening since the baby was born, and the doctors had taken one look at her and said ‘no’. They didn’t even try to help her with her breathing as they said it would just prolong her dying. Everyone just gave up on her.
Carolyn had a womb infection at 24 weeks which led to her baby's premature and birth. "I had suffered three miscarriages before, so we didn’t think there was much hope.” When Rachael was born she was grey and lifeless.
Ian Laing, a consultant neonatologist at the hospital, said: “All the signs were that the little one was not going to make it and we took the decision to just let the mother cuddle with her child as it was all we could do. Two hours later the tiny baby was crying. This is indeed a miracle baby and I have seen nothing like it in my 27 years of practice. I have not the slightest doubt that mother’s love saved her daughter.”
Rachael was moved onto a ventilator where she continued to make steady progress and was tube and syringe fed her mother’s pumped breastmilk. The doctors said that she had proved she was a fighter and that she now deserved some intensive care as there was some hope. She had done it all on her own – without any medical intervention or drugs. She had clung on to life – and it was all because of that cuddle. It had warmed up her body and regulated her heart and breathing enough for her to start fighting.
At 5 weeks she was taken off the ventilator and began breastfeeding on her own. At four months Rachel went home with her parents, weighing 8lbs – the same as any other healthy newborn. Because Rachel had suffered from a lack of oxygen doctors said there was a high risk of damage to her brain. But a scan showed no evidence of any problems and today Rachel is a healthy 8 month old with no signs of any illness due to her premature birth.
Rachel’s mom tells us, “She is doing so well. When we brought her home, the doctors told us that she was a remarkable little girl. And most of all, she just loves her cuddles. She will sleep for hours, just curled into my chest. It was that first cuddle which saved her life – and I’m just so glad I trusted my instinct and picked her up when I did. Otherwise she wouldn’t be here today.”
Of course this story if bringing back the miracle we had with our Patrick just 7 1/2 months ago! Born dead and then transfered to NICU as the "sickest baby there." Now he is a healthy and happy little boy - healed by the warmth of LOVE from Christ and his family! How Maria worked hard at saving her milk for her critical son that was brought back to LIFE. He slowly got it through a tube and then miraculously took a bottle and then nursed as soon as he was able to get the tubes out and into his mother's arms!
Less and less tubes and closer to being held close to the warmth and love of mom! How he would respond to just the voice of his mom, when we would visit him. His eyes would open and he would look at her and respond to her touch and her kisses. Then dad came back from Afghanistan and would sing to him in the NICU! Think of how that affected the consciouness of the many tiny babies in there to hear the loving lulaby of a father singing to his precious healed son! So amazing! The nurses thought that it was a most wondrous and miraculous thing to have a father singing to his son! Patrick always knew deep in his heart, mind, and soul that he was cherished and loved and surrounded by that as well as all the advances of medicine - he is now close to 8 months old and a picture of health! He shares happiness with his loving family with his smiles and laughter! The day he rolled over - he giggled with laughter - that is how they realized that he had done it!
Jesus, we are rich in our blessings from YOU. You warned us in the Gospel today of letting wealth and the material world come between our love for YOU... may we embrace poverty - remembering the wise words of Simon - "God is better than money, and that is why Susie/Hallel is poor!" We love you and want to fill our days with YOU and not all that glitters. You have shown us over and over that you can warm us with your LOVE and bring us to newness of LIFE so that we may carry forth your LIGHT into the darkness that fills our world. May the stories of a mother's undying LOVE and Faith in YOU bring your Truth into the lives of many this day. End the horrible taking of LIGHTS out of the world by abortion. May women come to realize that this is a LIFE! Jesus, we trust in YOU. Amen and Halleluia
"There is a terrible hunger for love. We all experience that in our lives - the pain, the loneliness. We must have the courage to recognize it. The poor you may have right in your own family.
Find them.
Love them!" Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
"People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway." Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PO_YUOAA1HU Danielle Rose singing Small Things with Great LOVE - this is what Blessed Teresa lived by and was from St Therese of Lisieux!
A daddy's love is so important!!!
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