Meghan's Story
I wrote the letter that follows to the Valley News during the 1998 Christmas season, a year after my daughter Meghan, who is now 16 years old, underwent open heart surgery. It contains our family's strongest feelings†from our most anxiety filled time. For any parent to suddenly have a child with a chronic illness is one of the hardest crosses to bear. Not only is it overwhelming to decipher and choose all of the medical options, but one is never guaranteed a successful result. Suddenly, life and death are very clear. I'll let the letter speak for itself:
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To the Editor:
Last year at this time, our oldest daughter, Meghan, was recovering from open heart surgery. The impact that this event had on Meghan, our family and all who know her was incredible. It was a life-changing experience. From the time that her aortic aneurysm was detected, to the time of her operation and beyond, we had a tremendous amount of love and concern expressed for our daughter and her situation. Two days after Meghan turned 15, she was operated on for six hours. Many people asked what they could do. "Pray for our daughter," was the answer we gave. This was the first time that our family, both nuclear and extended, had publicly asked for the prayers of so many people. Not only did we respond to those who asked, but also we sought out prayer groups, every church in the community, and friends and relatives beyond.
We know for a fact that Roman Catholics from the communities of Hartford, Lebanon and Hanover prayed for Meghan. The Congregational churches in Lebanon and West Lebanon prayed for her. The Methodists, Baptists and Episcopal churches prayed for her. Grace Outreach and the Jewish community (both locally and in Montreal) prayed for Meghan. Even people who were too shy to say or had no confirmed faith would tell us that they were keeping Meg in their thoughts.
The list continues, but the theme remains. There was an ecumenical outpouring of prayer for our daughter. There were no boundaries, and in the end by the grace of God, prayer and her excellent medical attention, she was and is a survivor of heart disease. Her surgeon called her "a miracle," as the state of her heart was in greater disrepair than anyone could have realized. The etiology of her disease was not determined, but sometimes we feel that maybe Meghan's purpose was for no other reason than to bring a community together in prayer.
Interestingly, after her operation, while reading a copy of Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul, we came across a similar situation. Poet laureate Maya Angelou, under the section "Higher Wisdom - Asking for Miracles," recalls asking everyone to pray for her injured son. It is a beautiful story, and in the end, she says, "I know that prayer changes things, I know. I don't question, I know."
The anniversary of Meghan's operation has passed. She is now 16 years old. We are blessed with the life of our beautiful and faith-healed daughter. And so we would like to say "thank you." Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for the power of prayer. Thank you for your love. During this season of faith, may we all be blessed by the power of prayer.
What was not mentioned in our letter was that Meghan is the oldest of a large family. At the time of her diagnosis, we were one week away from having our seventh child. To stay positive and suppress negative thoughts was an incredible task. Under normal circumstances, bringing a new baby into a family presents enough new challenges. My husband, Patrick is self-employed. Providing for our family financially falls on his shoulders, and prioritizing became essential. Not a day goes by that we don't give thanks for all of our beautiful children.
There are so many stories to tell. Stories about choices, life changes, coping, praying, surgery options. Even funny now†but not so at the time†is the time when we were supposed to be flying home from Cleveland to Hartford, CT. The de-icing agents were not working on the wings of the plane. The pilot made a U-turn in the sky and returned to Cleveland. The airport was a madhouse, with cancellations happening due to an unusually early and large snowstorm in November. Meghan was in a wheelchair and we had her 5-month old brother with us. But we got through it. All of these emotions, decisions and life changes feel insurmountable at times. But each day is a new one, and we take on the challenge.