Transition

Neal has been in the hospital since last Sunday night, and when he was given a blessing on Monday evening I asked for one as well. I received many answers to private struggles I've had since my daughter died last year. Our mortal lives are so full of personalized challenges, and I am grateful for the counsel and direction and comfort that was meant specifically for me and what I'm supposed to do next.
It looks like our mission is on hold, perhaps permanently. We've learned this week that Neal's health is much worse than we had thought, that his heart is working at capacity but is only able to pump 20% of the blood, and that has caused so many problems in the rest of his body. Every day I have expected him to be discharged and every day they say "Maybe tomorrow." When he finally comes home, he will have a maximum of one hour per day in his wheelchair; the rest of the time he has to be in bed. That's mind-boggling.
I have ordered an air mattress overlay for the hideabed so that Neal can watch movies and the news on the big TV in the family room, plus see visitors, talk with me while I'm in the kitchen and so on. That's certainly better than being isolated back in the bedroom.
Speaking of the kitchen, it looks like they'll start on the improvements sometime next week. Our goal is to have Neal home before that. I also need to paint the kitchen before they start on the cupboards because it's easier to paint when no masking tape is required. Maybe I should start painting at 3am when I can't sleep.
While lying awake at three this morning I taught an imaginary lesson as if I were in church. The main point was about our journey through life. We are each sent to Earth with a bundle of challenges that we must overcome. ...That our weaknesses may become strengths, the scriptures tell us. We have the Gospel teachings to help us know how to become like Christ, but our personal bundle of challenges is accompanied by just one test question: Will you be faithful in spite of all these challenges? It doesn't matter if a challenge is physical or economic or family situation or whatever, the test question is still the same.