Celebration of Life June 20, 2015

We invite you to a celebration of Rachael's life  on June 20th, 2015 from 11:00AM until 12:30PM at
Calvary Chapel Sarasota 3800 27th ParkwaySarasota, Fl 34235

Fellowship to follow at an off-site location. 

We are collecting testimonies and memories of Rachael's impact on your life, both before and after the accident.  Please leave them here as a Comment or Email to burtandnancy@gmail.com with the subject of 'Rachael'

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Blessings,
The Wizeman-Hinkle family.

A Little Fellowship - Monday Noon till 3

First off we thank you for your prayers and feel lifted up from them.  We took Saturday to reminisce and shed many tears.  The tears still flow but we are joyful in that Rachael is free from her broken body, the pain and struggle that she went through.  I am sitting down tonight and gathering pictures for her Celebration of Life that will be later in June.

We invite you over to our house between 12 and 3 on Monday, Memorial Day.  We have some finger food and mainly want to have the opportunity to fellowship with those who have been praying, sharing and following along with Rachael's journey.

So Monday 5/25 from 12 till 3 we would love for you to drop by.  No need to feel you need to spend the whole afternoon, we are well aware that there are lots of things going on.

Burt and Nancy

4215 Tee Road
Sarasota, Florida
34235

941-404-5805

Joy and Laughter

‘I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.’

                                                                                                Luke 15:7

Rachael reflected joy.  Upon any jocular moment she brought with her a magnanimous smile and a full hearty laugh.  My favorite thing to do with her was to make up characters that interacted with her and with each other.  I truly felt that one of the skills that I brought to the toolbox of care for Rachael was my sense of humor.  Keep it fun, light and entertaining, if she were laughing she was healthy and maybe the endorphins helped ease her pain and ours. 

John, a friend and caregiver of Rachael’s from 4 years ago that first met her at a rehab facility, was like her personal comedian.  I knew that when he was here she would have a fun day.   When John would be Rachael’s care giver of the day, we knew she would be exhausted by days end from laughing and interacting with him.  She loved him much and he became her best friend.  There were many times that she randomly would laugh out loud at something she was remembering from earlier in the day with John.

Prior to moving to Europe, Carol, Rachael’s aunt, and a gifted storyteller, would visit every Friday and spend time with Rachael sharing stories of what happened in her life that week.  She would spin hilarious yarns and seasoned reports that at the baseline gave Rachael a huge grin and would peak with Rachael’s classic guffaw.   

Yvonne, Rachael’s energetic aunt who is Facebook incarnate brought great laughter and joy to what would be Rachael’s last days.  She has all the information on all the family, interacts with people and their connections to several degrees removed and has a heart for them all.  Even when she was not being funny with purpose, Rachael found great joy in her Aunt Yvonne.

Then there is Daniel and Hanna, Rachael’s brother and sister.  They held the history of Fat Albert, Angus Beef, Hurlaps and many other colloquialisms and esoterica stored in the Wizeman-Hinkle vault of humor.  Hanna had taken up talking with Rachael in a very unique style invoking characters, situations and a cavalcade of sweet scented mirth that could take Rachael from moaning in pain to bursting with laughter.   Daniel, a mimic of speech patterns and with the offering of a younger brother's sibling raillery, always brought the laughter and smiles to Rachael with memories of family incidence, disruptions and the recalling of subtleties of characterizations. 

Nancy, not a purposed clown, would make Rachael laugh when she invoked her bold truths, wisdom and methods to others or myself.  Rachael would laugh at the two of us teaming up to clean or tend to her, facing each other on each side of the bed, discussing or at times arguing over some issue that would be revealed as inane then fodder for laughter once beguiled by Rachael’s amusement.  Rachael could turn awkward to awesome with just a smile.

So there has been a steady stream of fun and humor diluting the debris of pain and suffering in our home.  Horizontal humor to keep us going, the “Dust Of Snow” to reference Robert Frost’s poem:

‘The way a crow shook down on me

The dust of snow from a hemlock tree 
Has given my heart a change of mood
And saved some part of a day I had rued.’

God has blessed us with joy through Rachael.  As I type this now, I see her smile in my mind and miss her greatly.  What a picture to retain of her, that huge smile.  I love her so very much.  He brought so much fun into our home that we often remarked that our house was a live sitcom.  The joy is gone for now, sorrow and mourning are of the season but you still can feel the resonance of it.  The other day I told Nancy that I had a concern that if funny people here on earth are to bring joy to a fallen world and heaven is a place of no more tears and no more pain, then what will happen to the funny people in heaven?  They won’t be needed.  Maybe we will be sweeping the streets of gold. 

What I do know is what any and all of us can do to continue the joy.  What I wish anxiously (if twisted to be biblically apropos) to do is to share Christ with someone and be able to see him or her repent and be saved.  For that brings joy to heaven and with Rachael there, joy to her!  ‘There is more joy in heaven…’  We have a horizontal joy here on earth, we love comedy, we nearly worship great comedians but our jokes and jocularity are wood, hay and stubble to God.  What brings joy to heaven is a saved soul.  A merry heart is good medicine here, but we won’t need medicine in heaven.  The joy wrought from salvation lights up the host of saints alive with Christ.  As of yesterday at 5:27 PM earth time, Rachael was there. 

People are going to want to do something.  In such situations people don’t know what to do.  Prayer is needed for our family, our marriage and for the immediate business of dealing with a departed loved one.  What else you can do is to share Christ.  Be a seed that leads to a new soul for Christ.  Send some joy heaven bound by telling someone about Jesus.  For me from this point on, punctuating any report of salvation will be the laughter of Rachael. 

Rachael's Aunt Mary would run Rachael through a nightly routine when here and often over the phone.  Rachael is soft, she is safe and she is quiet and she is comfortable and she can now rest her peepers.

No More Tears No More Pain

Rachael went home to Jesus at 5:37 PM. 

Goodbyes

Rachael is not responding to the Meds and she and we have chosen to take her off  them.  She will be going home soon.

Exodus 14: 1-3

'...the wilderness has shut them in.'

Rachael's blood pressure is very low.  To increase takes harsh drugs that will cause damage to smaller veins in the arms and other sites normally used for an IV.  So a Central Line is placed via the jugular vein to down near the heart so that blood samples can be drawn and drugs given without hurting smaller veins.  With the low bp, it is not possible to get blood samples via an iv.   The IO is not in a place to allow drugs to go.  It is good for hydration.  So here is where she is at:

1. The Central Line failed as the line hit some type of an obstruction, blocking the pathway.  Probably a contracted muscle or scar tissue.
2. The next step is through the femoral artery in one of her legs.  It was found that she has one blood clot in each leg blocking that option. 
3. A third option is to go in under the clavicle, but given her condition and blood history, they decided to not take that option.

So she needs the drug to raise her BP but all  3 options are not feasible. 

Prayer - That her B P raises on its own or they get one of the options to work.

Right now, like Israel in the wilderness, she is out of options.  We ask for prayer that God will part a small sea and provide a way to get the line in.

Burt

Rachael Headed to ICU

Rachael has fallen into septic shock.   This is a severe infection.  You can read up on it  Here. 
Earlier this morning she vomited and had 2 more events during the day.  We were not able to get accurate vitals from her once she became diapheretic at which time we called 911.  In the ambulance her heart rate had jumped to 180 and her BP was in the 60's and dropping.  Breathing became shallow and rapid as the EMS guys dillegently worked to stabilize her.  They were unable to get an iv in so they resorted to an IO which is a radical method of placing an iv directly into the bone.
She is being given anti-biotics and fluids and is in and out of consciousness.  She is headed to the ICU and will remain there for an indefinite period. 

She has never been in more danger since the accident and we ask for your fervent prayer. There is so much for all of us to be praying for at this time with the loved ones in several families in the local body suffering severe and deadly illnesses.  Please add us to the incense of petition from the saints to our Lord of all those facing these medical trials.

Can you imagine doing this without Christ?  When we are weak he is strong for us.  We are weak.  We pray for Jesus to be glorified and thank Him for His strength.

One Step Up Two Steps Back – Gotta Remember

This round stinks. Tonight, while speaking with Hanna, she stated that she is not worried, God has pulled Rachael through other hard times and he will do it again. That was encouraging to hear. Through all of this we need to remember, Jesus is Lord. He is in charge of it all.
Rachael had shown improvement later yesterday and into the night. She was put on a full liquid diet which includes colored liquids, yogurts, soups and puddings. She ate 2 small containers of chocolate pudding last night. This morning, upon getting her first sip of coffee, she stopped sipping and vomited. It looked as though the pudding did not get digested. Since this morning she has only had 8 oz. of broth. She is not hungry. Later this evening she spiked a 102 fever.

It is not a good scene here. Rachael is being fed via a PIC line with nutrients supplied to her in a bag. They have to check her blood sugar twice a day and also check blood chemistry to assure us all that the nutrients are sufficient for nourishment. She has not had even a small meal in 12 days. She now is yelling out with what is left of her vocal strength. She has been given valium which did nothing for her and now diladid. The diladid did seem to calm her down. Nancy is a wreck and does not want to go home. It was quite a blow as we thought last night that she was on her way to getting back to the new normal. Then she was sick this morning.

April was a whirlwind. Rachael had been in the hospital following a severe blockage. She returned home and within a few days, Nancy accompanied Hanna's class on a great missions trip to North Carolina. It was an incredible blessing and a refreshing time for both of them. They were in the mountains for a week working with homeless adults and disabled kids with their families. The Lord blessed that window of time for the 2 of them to have a respite from these past 9 months of near monthly hospital crisis. The day they returned, Rachael took ill.

Since August 11^th, Rachael has not been out of the hospital for more than a month at a time! She has been through so much: Subtotal colectomy, separate surgeries on her thighs for contracture release, a girdle stone surgery, before she would be over one procedure, she would be slammed with another. Yes it takes its toll on her and all of us. It is just not easy. Yet, it is very true, our God sustains us. Jesus is alive and His word gives us a hope, not in the situation with Rachael, just a sense of hope for a better time. We do know that is coming for all of us that believe in His name. During times such as these we need to remember who we are in Christ and what we are in Christ.

His ^ddivine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him ^ewho called us by glory and virtue, ^4 fby which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be ^gpartakers of the divine nature, having escaped the ³corruption that is in the world through lust.

2 Peter 1:3-4

Ever find something and say "I forgot I had that!" That can easily happen with the promises of God if we allow the enemy to pull us away by creating circumstances to take our focus. We need to always remember what we have in Christ. We are His kids, adopted by Him, a plan laid out for us by Jesus Christ, the creator of all things. Even when our "eyelids are being held open" and there is no escape from grief, we need to remember…

And I said, "This is my ³anguish;

But I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High."

¹¹    I will remember the works of the Lord;

Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.

¹²    I will also meditate on all Your work,

And talk of Your deeds.

¹³    Your way, O God, is in ⁴the ^csanctuary;

Who is so great a God as our God?

¹⁴    You are the God who does wonders;

You have declared Your strength among the peoples.

¹⁵    You have with Your arm redeemed Your people,

The sons of Jacob and Joseph.

                        Psalm 77

    

I think it was Pastor Chuck Smith that had basically said that when you fall upon what you don't know, go back to what you do know. Good advice! 'Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. I will also meditate on all Your work.' Yes the going is weird and when the going gets weird, the weird remember God. Mediate on what our Lord has done. We can find strength in what Jesus has done in our lives and the promises of what he will continue to do. 

Hanna was so simple in her response tonight when I asked if she was handling this ok. Straight up remembering God's work so far with Rachael and banking on what is going to happen. Yet, whatever is in store, we are willing to walk the walk. It is not easy, we are going nuts, the stress is high. It has been a long hard slog these past 9 months. I lose it on the staff on occasion and feel such the idiot for doing so. We make up and move on. 

Gotta remember. All the magnificent things our Lord has done. All the lost that do not know what is there for them. Gotta remember. All the people we have met through Rachael, some coming to Christ by a seed planted from meeting us. Gotta remember. All the folks that have said what an encouragement they feel seeing us through this season. Gotta remember His works, His mighty hand! He is the God who does wonders. Gotta remember that when we are at our weakest, we are strong without trying. 
Continue to pray, please pray much. 

Blessings,
Burt and Nancy

 

 

Looking Better

Rachael started the day out being sick and ended feeling much better.  Earlier today she was given erythromycin to stimulate her bowel.  It worked.  She has not had more than a few spoon fulls of food for 10 days but the results this evening were much more than that.

Sorry if it is a bit disturbing but 'round here'  poopin' is a matter of life and cause for celebration!  

She was much more alert today and more vocal in her responses.  She is back to saying several words in a series and looks much better.  Nutrition is coming from a PIC line and dinner is in a drip bag.

She is still battling C-Diff and was taken off all drugs with the exception of an anti-nausea agent and Eryhromycin.  Yet, it looks like her body might fighting back as some symptoms appear to be on the decline.

We are exhausted and appreciate all your prayers, keep them up!  

 

Update

Well as we narrowed down the symptoms to try to find a resolve to Rachael's problem, we have found it will not currently require surgery. This made us very happy. However, she still has problems with her stomach bile. So they are going to put in a PIC line to be able to give her the proper nutrition that she needs and in so doing , buy time to figure out what the problem is. It could be a simple intestinal infection. Once we have eliminated that; hopefully that will resolve the issue, but if not then we can move on to other areas of research. So please pray that this is simply an intestinal infection to be cleared up with antibiotics. Nancy, Hanna and myself ask you to pray for us.

Imaging Results So Far

It looks like there is at the least a slow down in her upper GI and possibly a partial blockage.  More tests need to be done but the current series of Xrays are not yet finished.  In all it could to take up to 2 more hours.
Rachael slept through the Xrays.  Pray that this can be easily taken care of.

Burt

Rachael Headed for Imaging On Her Upper GI

A Gastrointestinal imaging has been ordered Stat for Rachael and she is on the way down to Xray to see what is visible for the cause of her most recent setback.  She had about 200 ml of bile exit from her PEG tube this morning which is an alarming amount in the short time it occurred.  

Burt

Rachael - Update

Rachael has gotten worse this morning.  She is again not digesting food in her upper GI. As of this morning she was nauseated and vomited at about 4:30AM. Nancy is at SMH today with Capricia.  The problem Rachael is facing is that she has had very little to eat for almost a week and now is not able to digest food.  She needs supernatural strength to get past the tests and move towards getting better.  Just prior to this she was hospitalized for GI issues for a week in April.  She is weak, tired and in need of nutrition.  Please pray however you feel led.
Blessings, Burt

Still at SMH

Rachael had been cleared to go home today but early this morning she became nauseated. We are concerned about this and we will be talking to the doctors this morning to decide if it is truly a good idea for her to come home.  She is still very weak, and has not eaten very much. We would be much happier if she were stronger before she came home.
Nancy is at the hospital right now and will be talking to the doctor this morning.

Discharged Today

Rachael is over the hump with the issues that plagued her on this visit.  Our thanks once again to First Physicians Group and Dr. Jack Rodman and Dr. Constantine Marousis and his most excellent assistant Paul!  Rachael is blessed with a team of physicians that keep her going during the rough times.  She has been through so much these past months.  Since August she has either been in the hospital or in recovery.  We are praying that his visit will be the last one for a long time.

So Rachael is doing better, still weak.  She began eating today with very small portions and will continue on this path until she is back to her normal intake.  She did have her PEG tube replaced which she was not at all happy about.  She is troubled by its presence and wishes it gone for good.
The tube has helped to save her several times.

We continue to learn about Rachael and how her body functions.  Please continue to pray whenever the Lord lays us on your hearts.

Blessings in Him,

Burt