Faith, Grafted-In released July 2, 2010.
I'll remember that date until the day I die.
Why you may ask? The book's not that good is it?
NO!!!
But that's the day my son, Nate (Nathanael Klein) married Lyz (Elizabeth Lewis).
And there's a beautiful story behind that wedding.
First, a bit of information about Nate. He helped me develop the story line for AIRAM'S SECRET, a tween through teen book releasing this fall. Nate credits his interest in storytelling and writing with having grown up listening to my bedtime stories. Back then, the Teenage Ninja Turtles were all the rage.
I hated them, they were all about fighting and violence. So, in all my stories, the turtles traveled the globe on mission trips, doing good deeds.
Nate and Lyz met, dated, got engaged, planned a wedding and even their honeymoon plans were the kind of things romance novels are filled with.
Then two days before the wedding, a freak accident and a 50 foot fall, left my son with two broken crippled feet. When they brought him home from the hospital, it took three men to gently lift him from the truck and carry him into the house.
Beside himself with pain and guilt, Nate apologized to Lyz for 'ruining everything' over and over, even though it wasn't his fault.
Who knew if he'd ever walk again? Most of us could focus on nothing but the heartbreak. But not Lyz! She caressed his brow and offered words of love and encouragement. "...You're alive, that's all that matters!"
The nights were long, the days were endless. Through it all, she rarely left his side--and she never allowed him to despair. Hiding her own tears, and casting aside a fair share of dreams, she tirelessly monitored his meds, brought his ice packs, and ignored the unhappy grumblings of a young man overwrought with pain.
Her bravery didn't stop our flow of tears -- but it helped us refocus on our gratitude.
Two families, about to be united, pooled their resources, acted out their faith, and grew closer than we would have believed possible.
Then on July 2, Nate in a wheelchair, with purple and swollen legs and feet, awaited her at the front of the wedding pavilion. The furrows in his brow and the dullness of his eyes revealed the depth of his pain and desperation.
Then Lyz flowed down the aisle--and we watched a miracle take place as his face and eyes illuminated with an all-encompassing love.
The pastor said, "Lyz, you look beautiful--Nate, you look okay!"
Necessity required the service be shortened. When Pastor Frank pronounced them man and wife, Lyz, in her lovely gown, turned and said, "I've got this!" She grabbed the wheelchair's handlebars and went with him back down the aisle, past a thunder of applause.
There were a lot of people at that reception, and I don't know how many other weddings, cumulatively, had been attended by them. But I do know this--it was one wedding that won't be forgotten by any.
Joy overcame! Faith and the indomitable human spirit, as well as the ability to improvise ... allowed the most memorable wedding dance to take place that any of us had ever witnessed.
With Nate kneeling in his wheelchair, they swayed, kissed, spun, and even dipped. All conversations ceased, and there were few, if any, dry eyes in the room.
The story isn't finished. Surgery was performed on July 15, followed by nearly two months in a wheelchair. In mid-September Nate began the process of walking again . He's on crutches or using a cane ... and moving slowly but there is progress.
We don't know if he'll make a full recovery--but God is in control ... guiding, teaching ... and we will reap a victory!
And without question--no mother could ever be more grateful for the beautiful spirit of her daughter-in-law.
