HOUSE PARTY

As I sit in Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, TN, I'm surfing the net to research my sons condition and to try hard to re-establish my faith in The Lord.

 

3 yrs ago, on May 8th 2008, my now 20 yr old son Matthew was a passenger in a horrible motor vehicle accident while riding with a friend. At that moment in time,  his life and ours was forever changed. He suffered a traumatic brain injury and had immediate brain surgery at The Med in Memphis after being air-lifted with not a single Dr knowing if he could even live through the surgery. His brain was damaged and bleeding internally requiring immediate removal of the entire right upper portion of his skull for emergency surgery to repair bleeds and allow his brain room to swell.The truck he was riding in was hit directly on my sons door by and 18-wheeler loaded with steel. My son took this impact on his head and right side of his body at 65MPH. He was ejected on a 4 lane highway and thrown probably 40 feet landing in the median between the 4 lanes of traffic. The Sherriff on the scene has been my friend for decades. On our 1 hour drive to the hospital - as our son was air-lifted, the Sherriff called me - I asked him how my son was - with pain in his voice he prepared me for the worst. He said it was really really bad and he had no clue if he would sustain the flight according to the attending medics. I felt as though someone ripped my heart from my body at that moment. I hung up the phone and spent the next 45 mins of the trip reassuring my wife and younger son that it was going to be ok.

 

At the hospital - they let us see our son as he was about to go to surgery - broken back, hip, ribs, bleeding profusely externally - liver, kidney, spleen lacerated and punctured lung. They gave us little hope and seeing him gave us even less.

 

I took my wife and younger son to a special waiting room for families who have someone about to endure a possible life ending surgery. We prayed and met with family and friends who were showing up as time went on. We waited for what seemed an eternity. The surgeon came in about 3 hours later and said it was remarkable how well he came through the surgery - miraculous - BUT it would be a while before we'd know if he'd make it. The next 3 wks were a roller coaster of near death experiences and limited visitation due to the worry of infection etc... I spent every minute I could with my son, my wife and in the Chapel at the hospital. I begged the Lord to please allow us more time with our son who had just turned 17. On one of the trips - I felt something......I felt an overwhelming belief that God was going to help Matthew pull through the injury, infections, pneumonia etc regardless of the Dr's constantly telling us it was not looking good. I was SO sure that my wife then became sure as well...As we got to week 3 they prepared us for a child who would likely wake up and not know any of us or even be able to lift a hand or finger, I knew better - God sent me a message in that Chapel that my son was going to be ok.

 

My son awoke - 3 weeks into a coma - looked at me with a tube running into a hole in his throat and made a motion like he was writing. They looked at him like, what is he doing, I said give him a pen/paper. He wrote down, "Let us go home"!  I cant tell you how that felt - I'll never be able to explain it to anyone. God was there then entire journey!

 

It's been a journey for sure. My son walked out of the hospital using a walker, only because they made him to keep weight off of his hip, with the entire right upper side of his skull removed as well. 3 months later the bone was put back in - 5 months later his body rejected the bone and it was replaced with a polymer plate the size of mans right hand.

 

3 yrs later he has a seizure disorder and some muscle damage in his face but physically and mentally 100% for the most part. No one really knows why as he has very extensive brain damage. They dont know why he did not show signs of this brain damage but I do... God

 

Tonight I sit with my son in Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, TN - 3 yrs after the accident, doing a week long study to see of this damaged area of his brain should be removed to possibly stop his seizures which are the ONLY thing preventing him from going to college or tech school - basically keeping him from moving forward in life.

 

As this has stretched out, I have been mad at God because my son is stuck in a rut.. and as I type this I see how ignorant I am for being upset with God for God is the reason my son made all the miraculous changes that the Dr's could not explain and as I sit here I again feel God telling me it's ok...

 

I'm not sure where we go from here... I feel sure they will suggest removal of damaged brain to stop the seizures but as we continue down this path, I pray that God gives my son and my family the strength to continue to be strong in faith and to trust in him to be our guide down this unknowing path.

 

Not sure how/why I happened across your radio station on my laptop either - never heard of it until now but when I saw your headline, Stepping out on Faith, I was compelled to type this.

 

I want to thank all of you for sharing the word of God through scripture and music. I want to thank you as well for taking time to read this email. I would like to ask that you please send a prayer the direction of my son, Matthew Seager...  He is a fantastic son and I'm so proud God presented him to us and has seen fit to keep him with us longer in spite of what all the Dr's said.

 

God Bless you all and thanks for what you do!

 

Scott Seager