My Doctors Didn't Save Me
Stay caught up! Read - "Broken Hearts"
Okay, I should probably clarify. My doctors did save my life. Multiple times. But there have been many people who have saved me, and they weren't always wearing a white coat and holding medical tools.
My life has been saved by normal, every day people who have a desire to do good. People who make the world a better place by looking for those in need and helping them, without even a second thought. These people are my angels. These people saved my life.
Thursday, April 21st, 2016 was a busy day. I woke up the same way I had been for the past month - tired, in pain, feeling like I was going to throw up, and with everything spinning. Things were so bad that I was getting to the point where brain surgery couldn't come soon enough, even though it was only one day away. I really just wanted to stay in bed for the next 24 hours until we had to leave for the hospital, but I had things to do.
I had to go to my softball game that day. I was lead off hitter and starting in the outfield and I couldn't let my team down!
Just kidding.
I could hardly focus on my own hand right in front of my face, so I definitely was not going to be hitting home runs anytime soon.
But I did want to go to the game. Not to play, but to support my team. I had also been told that there was going to be a little fundraiser for me and my family so they wanted us to come if it was possible. I figured it was probably the last game I'd be able to go to for awhile, so I fought against my desire to stay in bed the whole day, threw on my jersey and some shorts, and I went.
I held back tears as my family and I arrived at the softball field. There were balloons and streamers everywhere. There were posters hanging on the fences that said things like "Miracles 4 Mickey" and "We Love Mickey!". My team had blue, green, and pink ribbons in their hair - my favorite colors - and new #7 stickers on their helmets. Even the opposing team had grey bows in their hair, (grey being the color for brain tumor awareness).
For the "little" fundraiser, they were going to donate every penny that was earned from the snack shack. It was an incredibly nice gesture, but I was only expecting we'd maybe get a hundred dollars from it. It was just a little snack shack at a high school softball game after all.
And if you don't know already, no one really goes to softball games except the families, and I wasn't totally convinced that selling $1 candy bars would cover the cost of brain surgery.
But at the start of the game, it seemed like the whole town and school showed up. The line at the snack shack, which was usually non-existent, was now kept consistently long throughout the entire game. People were eagerly waiting to purchase that $1 candy bar or drop money into the big donation jar on the table with my name on it. There were players, parents, coaches, and fans from BOTH teams donating and supporting me and my family. People were dropping ten and twenty dollar bills into my jar without even batting an eye.
I was able to sit in the dugout with my team during the game and that itself was a mini miracle. I loved being with them. Even though I wasn't playing and I wasn't in full uniform, I knew I was still part of the team. I was still a Red Devil softball player, and these were still my sisters.
In the middle of the game, I looked out of the dugout at the crowd of people in the bleachers. I looked at the long line at the snack shack that had not yet shortened. I looked at all these people who were here for the fundraiser, who were here for me, and I felt completely and utterly overwhelmed with gratitude.
I had no idea so many people knew about the fundraiser. I had no idea so many people knew about me. The whole thing was put together in TWO days, and somehow everyone in Springville seemed to know about it. I didn't consider myself unpopular, but I definitely wasn't at the top of the social totem pole, so I was surprised to see how many kids from my high school were there.
My dad had to leave the game early to go take care of some things at work, and when he got home he called my mom to talk about insurance. We have always been blessed to have great insurance, but there was still quite a bit of money we had to pay before reaching the deductible, and my parents didn't know where that money was going to come from. They didn't know how we were going to afford my surgeries.
When the game ended, my softball coach, Jill, collected and counted all the money from the snack shack and the donation jar. She put the money in an envelope, wrote the amount on the outside, and walked over to give it to my mom and I. My mom took one look at the amount written on the envelope and broke down.
The amount that was written on the envelope, the amount that had been raised within just a few hours by setting out a donation jar and selling $1 candy bars, the amount that was a LOT more than the hundred dollars I was expecting, was almost the exact amount we needed to pay off the deductible.
Guys.
It was literally just a few dollars off.
If that doesn't count as a miracle, I don't know what does.
Before we left the game, I took some pictures with my team and we all shared a big group hug. It took almost an hour after the game was over before we actually left because I kept being stopped by so many people wanting to hug me and wish me good luck. The love and support I felt was SO real and SO strong. I left that game feeling reassured and confident that everything was going to be okay.
We got home right before my dad left for work, so we had time to show him the envelope with all the money in it. My dad saw the amount written on the outside and, like my mom, immediately broke down. For a few minutes, we all smiled and cried and hugged in our kitchen.
Okay, I should probably clarify. My doctors did save my life. Multiple times. But there have been many people who have saved me, and they weren't always wearing a white coat and holding medical tools.
My life has been saved by normal, every day people who have a desire to do good. People who make the world a better place by looking for those in need and helping them, without even a second thought. These people are my angels. These people saved my life.
I had to go to my softball game that day. I was lead off hitter and starting in the outfield and I couldn't let my team down!
Just kidding.
I could hardly focus on my own hand right in front of my face, so I definitely was not going to be hitting home runs anytime soon.
But I did want to go to the game. Not to play, but to support my team. I had also been told that there was going to be a little fundraiser for me and my family so they wanted us to come if it was possible. I figured it was probably the last game I'd be able to go to for awhile, so I fought against my desire to stay in bed the whole day, threw on my jersey and some shorts, and I went.
For the "little" fundraiser, they were going to donate every penny that was earned from the snack shack. It was an incredibly nice gesture, but I was only expecting we'd maybe get a hundred dollars from it. It was just a little snack shack at a high school softball game after all.
And if you don't know already, no one really goes to softball games except the families, and I wasn't totally convinced that selling $1 candy bars would cover the cost of brain surgery.
But at the start of the game, it seemed like the whole town and school showed up. The line at the snack shack, which was usually non-existent, was now kept consistently long throughout the entire game. People were eagerly waiting to purchase that $1 candy bar or drop money into the big donation jar on the table with my name on it. There were players, parents, coaches, and fans from BOTH teams donating and supporting me and my family. People were dropping ten and twenty dollar bills into my jar without even batting an eye.
I was able to sit in the dugout with my team during the game and that itself was a mini miracle. I loved being with them. Even though I wasn't playing and I wasn't in full uniform, I knew I was still part of the team. I was still a Red Devil softball player, and these were still my sisters.
In the middle of the game, I looked out of the dugout at the crowd of people in the bleachers. I looked at the long line at the snack shack that had not yet shortened. I looked at all these people who were here for the fundraiser, who were here for me, and I felt completely and utterly overwhelmed with gratitude.
I had no idea so many people knew about the fundraiser. I had no idea so many people knew about me. The whole thing was put together in TWO days, and somehow everyone in Springville seemed to know about it. I didn't consider myself unpopular, but I definitely wasn't at the top of the social totem pole, so I was surprised to see how many kids from my high school were there.
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| My brother Dave, me, dad, mom, and my brother Jordan |
When the game ended, my softball coach, Jill, collected and counted all the money from the snack shack and the donation jar. She put the money in an envelope, wrote the amount on the outside, and walked over to give it to my mom and I. My mom took one look at the amount written on the envelope and broke down.
The amount that was written on the envelope, the amount that had been raised within just a few hours by setting out a donation jar and selling $1 candy bars, the amount that was a LOT more than the hundred dollars I was expecting, was almost the exact amount we needed to pay off the deductible.
Guys.
It was literally just a few dollars off.
If that doesn't count as a miracle, I don't know what does.
We got home right before my dad left for work, so we had time to show him the envelope with all the money in it. My dad saw the amount written on the outside and, like my mom, immediately broke down. For a few minutes, we all smiled and cried and hugged in our kitchen.
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Now I'm going to fast forward a bit.
After I had my brain and neck surgery, there was a two week period where I was allowed to go home and rest before heading back to the hospital for my back surgery. During those two weeks, I slept and watched a lot of River Monsters and Family Feud. But the biggest thing that happened during those two weeks was another fundraiser.
Brooke is one of my angels. She is a neighbor and the mom of one of the girls on my team. Brooke and her family also owned a few snow cone shacks around Springville, and she put together a fundraiser at one of the shacks during those two weeks I was home.
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| Mom, me, and Brooke |
Again, I was SO grateful, but I wasn't expecting much. It was just a little snow cone shack in the parking lot of a gas station. But again, when I showed up, I had to hold back tears.
My entire team was there holding signs on the side of the road, advertising the fundraiser. There was a constant line of people stretching across the whole parking lot, waiting their turn to get a snow cone and add their money to my donation jar. They had set up a superhero themed "photo station" so people could take fun pictures together. But the best thing about the fundraiser was the T-shirts they were selling.
I am a BIG superhero fan. (I grew up with four brothers. I didn't really have a choice.) I love Marvel, and Captain America has always been my favorite superhero. As a surprise, Brooke and a few other people designed Captain America themed T-shirts with my jersey number, (#7), and #play4mickey on the back! I was speechless. It was the coolest thing I'd ever seen. They had a TON of these shirts made, and sold them at the snow cone shack as part of the fundraiser.
I had to sit in my wheelchair most of the time, but I didn't mind. I was just happy to be there. I just had brain and neck surgery a week before, and now I was out of the house hanging out with my family and friends. The fact that I felt well enough to be there was such a tender mercy.
Over the next few weeks, my softball team played a lot of games against a lot of different teams, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that EVERY SINGLE TEAM did something for us. There were gift baskets, cookies, bows, and more fundraisers. I received so many cards and posters from these teams and these softball players who were supposed to be my rivals.
Over the next few weeks, my softball team played a lot of games against a lot of different teams, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that EVERY SINGLE TEAM did something for us. There were gift baskets, cookies, bows, and more fundraisers. I received so many cards and posters from these teams and these softball players who were supposed to be my rivals.
Honestly, I could go on and on about everything that was done for me, so I'll tell more stories in later blog posts. I could write an entire book just talking about all the people who saved me. There were so many events, so many donations, and so many thoughtful people. Without any of that, I wouldn't have survived. I truly believe my life wasn't just saved by doctors, my life was saved by compassionate people.
D&C 84:88 - "And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up."
❤ / Mickey
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Now rewind back to that Thursday, the day before brain surgery.
Later that night after the softball game, we had asked some close friends and family to come over and help give me a priesthood blessing. My bishop gave the actual blessing, and to be honest, I couldn't tell you a single thing he said. All I really remember was how I felt.
I had been dizzy, sick, stressed, nervous, and scared the whole day, but the second I felt all the hands placed on my head and the second I heard my bishop start the blessing, I felt normal again. I wasn't sick. I wasn't scared. I felt a stillness that I had never felt before.
That blessing was the last piece of the puzzle I needed to be physically, spiritually, and emotionally prepared for what was about to come.
➼➼➼➼➼
❤ / Mickey
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| Game Vs. Spanish Fork |
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| Game Vs. Manti |
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| Game Vs. Payson |
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| Fundraiser held by Bonneville Baseball |
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| Game Vs. Maple Mountain |
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| Game Vs. Wasatch |
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| Game Vs. Salem Hills |
I'm a week late reading, but am so touched with your humble stories. Your mother was my best friend growing up, and I see so much of her strength in you and your words. It hurts to know how much pain and uncertainty y'all have had to go through, but also know that you and your family are strong enough to handle it. Hope school is going well. Can't wait to read this week's blog.
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