Stolpe Star 2021

 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 Romans 15:13 seems a particularly appropriate Christmas prayer and greeting for 2021.

 Passing of a Generation

 Candy’s Dad, Charles Miller, passed from this life into Christ’s presence in September. Though he had been living near us in Wisconsin for 3 years, he was buried with his wife, Roma, - Candy’s Mom - in Ft. Snelling National Cemetery in Minnesota. At 94 he had outlived many family and friends, but a good group of friends and neighbors came to the memorial service to remember his life of faith, prayer, faith sharing, and his lifetime of service with Wooddale Church and N. C. Little Hospice and more.

 Rising Generations

 Leanne and Jon live in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania where he is an automated building controls engineering supervisor for Siemens. Leanne has been a kindergarten teacher who is looking for the next step on her path. Hannah is in her second year of teaching high school Spanish in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. Isaac is a senior at Grove City College in Pennsylvania with only student teaching to finish his degree in music education.

 We share a duplex with Rachel and David in Milwaukee. David teaches at Dottke High School, a project based learning model. Rachel ended her role as an aid for special needs students and does some nannying for infants and is contributing a lot to Candy’s care. Sam is a Resident Assistant in the dorm at Goshen College, Indiana, where he is a sophomore. Elizabeth is a high school freshman,

 Erik continues as the Director of Music with the Dallas School of Rock. He provides music for worship in the Central Dog Park at what is now Central Commons as Central Christian Church. I served them as pastor 2000-2011, and they concluded their service after 158 years as a congregation.

 Hope in Our Generation

 For many years, I (Norm) have taught and aspired to live into being encountered by God in the spaces between realities that seem paradoxical and even contradictory. In this year of relentless pandemic, unprecedented political upheaval, social turmoil, growing environmental crises, and more, we are all hungry for hope. Thus pleading with the God of hope to fill us with abounding hope seems more urgent than ever.

 This year Candy and I have been pondering hope in our unsettled spaces. This is only an overview so as not to bogged down in excessive detail.

 Candy’s Dad had a stroke in March and broke his hip in May, after which he needed to move to a facility with a higher level of care. He began to receive hospice care in August and left us in September. We engaged in daily presence on this home stretch of his life.

 We had four generations together in Minnesota for his memorial (except our grandsons Isaac and Sam were not able to get away). Good family together experiences went along with warm gratitude and memories of “Grandpa Charlie.” In a rather freak accident the morning before his service, as Candy was showering at the hotel, the glass door shattered, and she was cut badly enough to need to be taken by ambulance to the ER to get stitched up. The service was delayed three hours, but Candy was back on deck, if somewhat shaken.

 In October Candy slipped and lost her balance in our dining room. She broke her right hip. After a whole day in the ER and another whole day of waiting, she had surgery followed by a few weeks of rehab. The day she was to be discharged, we were informed she had tested positive for Covid-19, so we had two weeks of quarantine at home. She never had any symptoms, and all of us in the house tested negative. Though awkward, we are thankful for the vaccinations that almost certainly protected us from anything worse. Without a doubt, the stress, surgical trauma and anesthesia have accelerated Candy’s Alzheimer’s, to which we are adjusting along with her decreased mobility.   

While Candy was in rehab, I had a routine dermatology appointment. They found a spot on my neck that they hadn’t seen six months earlier. Biopsy showed a skin cancer that needed surgical removal. After removing two chunks a day apart, they stitched me up on the fourth day. Prognosis is good, but vigilance is essential.

 While we welcome any prayers on our behalf, we don’t want any of you to sadly bemoan our plight. I can’t count how many times Candy has said as we worked on these things, “But we sure have a lot to be thankful for.” Indeed! Family is at the top of the list. Sharing the duplex with Rachel, David, and Elizabeth (Sam away at college) has been essential for daily tasks, and encouragement from Pennsylvania and Texas has been wonderful. Friends of Milwaukee Mennonite and Meadowbrook Churches have been immensely helpful. Thanks to Candy’s Dad, we were able to replace our 1999 Chevy Blazer with a 2017 Toyota Seneca, which is much easier for Candy to get in and out of. With the help of a contractor friend and Elizabeth, David built a ramp at the back of the house, with a new back door as well (and made a number of safety changes in the house). 

 We are certainly thankful for these practical things on our 2021 journey, and we take them as small signs of the much larger hope that Romans 15:13 invokes. We are learning to grow in hope without expecting that “everything will turn out alright.” In Romans 4:18 Paul wrote that “hoping against hope [Abraham] believed.” And Hebrews 11:39 observes that “all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised.” Yes, we have the hope of resurrection to eternal life. Thanks be to God for Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection! But until then, we nourish hope in the ambiguous spaces of each day.

 Love and Peace,

Norm and Candy

 

 

 

 

Update from Candy’s 11-01 Orthopedic Appointment and 11-02 Care Conference

 The orthopedic appointment went quite well. Everything seems to be aligned and healing properly. Incisions are healing nicely. Some concern about modest swelling of right leg to be monitored so if it gets worse intervention can head off any possible blood clot issues.

 

Care Conference was quite encouraging. Rachel went along. Candy is able to walk 60’ with a walker. A week ago she couldn’t even stand. Now she can handle transfer from recliner to walker or wheelchair to toilet and back. She is eating well and able to feed herself. Toileting is going much better now. She wants to get home as soon as possible, so they are working on gaining strength and proficiency with the walker. She has been needing help with dressing for a while, which they want to try to improve.

 

They are projecting November 12 for completing therapy, but that could change either direction depending on progress (and insurance). She doesn’t know that yet as time and uncertainty are increasingly elusive for her (before the accident). We are working to get the house ready. David already installed grab bars in bathroom. Rugs and other trip/slip hazards are being removed. David and a contractor friend will be starting to build a ramp at the back of the house. When she gets home, occupational and physical therapists will make other recommendations and work with her to function as fully as possible at home. We are retiring our 1999 Chevy Blazer for a 2017 Toyota Sienna for better accessibility and comfort.

 

In 2019 routine lab work prompted an investigation of bone thinning related to a hyperactive parathyroid gland (not to be confused with the thyroid). At the time, surgical intervention didn’t seem urgent, but now we will be revisiting that as bone thinning has progressed, and we don’t want to risk another fracture. Still unknown is how the stress of this experience (on top of her Dad’s passing and a scary accident in the hotel in Minnesota just before his memorial service that sent her to the ER for stitches) and the effects of anesthesia and short-term pain meds may affect her Alzheimer’s.

 

The staffs at Froedtert Hospital and Lutheran Home (where she is getting rehab) have been wonderful. We have gotten considerable prayer and practical support from family, church, and friends. Our shared duplex household with Rachel, David, and Elizabeth just upstairs has been invaluable. We are all tired, and Norm is especially exhausted. Nevertheless, we are exceedingly grateful and hopeful as we anticipate these next steps. Thanks to all of you who are receiving this for your love and prayers.