It’s Only a Matter of Time

Monday morning, after consulting with the neurosurgeon, Ben approached his son in the ICU waiting room. He sat down beside his son and spoke softly with great sadness in his voice. "Chad, I have very sad news. Dr. Nordvall just told me that Mom is not going to come out of the coma. It's only a matter of time. I'm going to find Beth and tell her the doctor's news. We can all get together later this morning."

After his dad left, Chad talked with Doug for a few minutes, and they shared a brief time of prayer before Doug left for work. Chad found himself alone in the room with his mother. He stared for several minutes at the still form on the bed as the respirator pumped life into her breath by breath. The large, dark bruises on her pasty white face were tinged with sickly yellow. The woman looked more like a stranger than like Chad's Mom.