ALL THAT!

  

When I was a teenager, I was extremely naïve. (To bad I didn’t stay that way) I wasn’t naïve because I was brought up in a Christian home and sheltered like some use to be. I just simply chose to not do many of the things my friends did.

Many of my friends were into drugs. But I never had the desire. I can say I never smoked cigarettes. I never smoked pot. I never did acid. And, I never ate mushrooms. No, I wasn’t little miss goody-to-shoes. I can’t say I wasn’t around friends who did all of the above, because I was.  I just never understood why they thought getting a buzz from those things was ALL THAT! Oh, and the smell…nasty!

As soon as I turned 16 much of my time was spent in a bar. It was located in Louisville, Kentucky and called was Whispering Hills Dance Club. It wasn’t your average bar where you must be 21+ to enter. Because of the way the bar was set up you could get in at the age of 18. One area was for the under-aged and another roped off area was for the over 21 crowd. Either way there was access to the dance floor. And on that dance floor was pretty much where you could find me Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.

Yes, I looked 18. And, yes, I had a fake ID. But I never needed that ID. All I needed was my smile and a wink. I thought that place was ALL THAT!

Now, I don’t want to mislead anyone who might be reading this. I, by no mean was an angel. My way of getting a buzz was through alcohol. I’ve looked back at those years many, many times and wondered how on earth I survived. I lived about 40 minutes from that club. And every time I left I was no where near being sober. There were many times that I would remember arriving at the club but waking the next day with no clue how I got home. But, I knew I drove, because I always drove. And, I drove a car that was an on-the-column stick and none of my girlfriends knew how to drive a stick shift. I have a little control thing about me that when I’m ready to leave; I’m ready to leave and I don’t want to be stuck somewhere because someone else isn’t ready to go home. (And I’m still like that today).

Today, I know it was all by the grace of God that I didn’t wreck, kill someone, or get pulled over. I didn’t get my first ticket until I was about 22 and it was for speeding and I wasn’t drunk. (Thank God!)

I didn’t go to that club to drink. I went to dance. Something I love to do, even to this day. But the simple fact that guys bought me drinks and I drank them led me on a horrible path of addiction. I am not blaming anyone else for my addiction. I had a choice. Drink or not drink. And I chose to drink. A LOT! It even got so bad I kept a bottle of whiskey in my locker at school. I thought alcohol was ALL THAT.

When I turned 21, I met a guy who I thought was ALL THAT! Tall, dark, handsome, and available. We had dated for 3 years when I got pregnant. And it wasn’t from immaculate conception!

Only months after we found out I was expecting he moved to Georgia for a job. I can say that during my pregnancy I drank very little, but I was always in a bar…dancing. Even with a big ole 8 month prego belly.

Though my tall, dark and handsome ALL THAT was living states away we still managed to see each other and even began planning a wedding. I had found and purchased my dress. I had asked girlfriends to be in the wedding and we had picked the dresses that they would wear. But during a weekend visit to Georgia, while he was at work, I found a letter from another female. A very descriptive letter of the things they had done last weekend…..in Indiana. Where I lived!!! I was furious, hurt, betrayed and completely lost as what to do next. By the time he came home from work I had everything packed in my car. I was 6 ½ months pregnant. Needless to say the wedding was cancelled.

NOTE*****For those of you who are young or first time expecting mommies-to-be what you’re about to read was 25 years ago. It’s not like it is now. So, please, don’t freak out reading this.

I’d had trouble during the pregnancy, but the doctor kept telling me it was braxton hicks (false labor pains). While in the labor room, by myself, waiting for the labor pains to become intense a nurse came running in frantic saying they had lost the babies heartbeat and they were going to deliver the baby NOW. My mom and my cousin, Krista were with me, but they had just stepped out of the room. They did make it back in the room during all the commotion.

My son, Tyler Kyle, made his debut in the world on November 10, 1989. 

He was ALL THAT!

(A little graphic here)…When the placenta came out it was the size of a small dried up apple core. NOT what it’s supposed to be like. It should be the size of your palm, round and somewhat firm. There were doctors and nurses everywhere. I mean everywhere!!! Seriously, there were about 15 total in my room.

There was no cry. No extremely happy voices from the nurses on how cute he was. Just rapid movement, and hustling about in the room with lots of chatter that I didn’t understand. Then I heard it. It was faint. It was the most joyous noise I’d ever heard. It was his voice.

His cry. It was ALL THAT!

The next 24 hours were absolutely c-r-a-z-y. He started have seizures due to a bleed on his brain. It had been caused by the forceps of pulling him out. The bleed wasn’t stopping and he was critical. I was critical. They couldn’t get my blood pressure down.

Although my granddaddy was a Southern Baptist preacher when I was a little girl, God was not present in my world. But, that day I sure was praying for a miracle. I had never been so scared in all my life and I have never been that scared again.

I received that miracle. He survived. Yet, there was no praise and no thanks given to God. But, my son wasn’t healed. We had many years of sickness and seizures.

Today, I can say he has no issues of problems from that bleed. No seizures. No learning disability. To see him you’d never know there was a problem at birth.

As I said, I received that miracle. In fact, I received many of them. More than my fair share.

He was breathing.

The bleed stopped.

He began eating.

He came out of NICU.

At 9 he was seizure free. Him being seizure free was ALL THAT!

And I can say because of my son, I walk with the Lord. You see, I didn’t give up the alcohol. That addiction continued. And, sad to say my son was usually at the end of the anger that came with the drunken state of mind.

He started going to church with the Daniel family; David, Kim, Clay, Aaron, Eli and Jenna. That family is ALL THAT!

Tyler fell in love with God! At the age of 11 he approached me about wanting to accept God and wanting to get baptized. I blew him off, several times. Taking a huge chance he confronted me again and put his hands on my shoulders and shook me, all while saying, “Momma, you drink way too much. We need God in our home. I want to be saved and baptized and I want you to do it with me.”  

What could I say? If I said no… what kind of life would that give him? Would he grow up to be like me? Would he love me, if I said no?

I said, yes. We accept Christ together. On the day we were to be baptized I said, “OK. You go first.” He looked at me with his huge chocolate eyes and said, “No. You go first. Because, I don’t want you backing out.” So, I went first. And my breath was completely taken by the Holy Spirit. I cried for hours after coming up out of the water. It was ALL THAT!

I stopped drinking cold turkey, disassociated myself with all my drinking buddies, and I dove into activities at church to keep myself busy. I even got the opportunity to sing with the Billy Graham crusade choir. That was ALL THAT!

So you see… I’ve received many miracles and blessings. My biggest miracle stands 6’4” and will turn 25 this year. He will graduate from college in May with a Bachelors Degree in ministry and audio/video technology. Two weeks after his graduation he will say “I DO” and marry a beautiful young lady named, Heather. She’s ALL THAT!

But, without God, I would have nothing. He is Mighty. He is loving. He is faithful. He is my Heavenly Father and He is…ALL THAT!!!!

Blessings,

Bo

02/21/2014