Publication Info:
- Available: Feb 1, 2008
- 344 pages
- ISBN: 9781434348777 (9781434348784 paperback)
Enduring Miracles
Valley Fever is endemic to the southwest region of the United States. Very few people realize that the very soil they build their homes and lives upon contains a life-threatening disease. When untouched soil becomes stirred through the process of economic development, farming, and monsoon storms the dirt executes a fungal spore called coccidioidomycosis. This spore, when airborne and inhaled into the body of humans and animals has the potential to cause destruction to vital organs. Valley fever breeds into a multi-cellular structure reproducing lethal cells inside the lungs, bones, and most deadly the tissue in the brain.
For one man in particular, my husband, Juan contracted valley fever which progressed into fungal meningitis. The spores disseminated into the spinal fluid attacking the central nervous system and meninges. This injury to the brain caused hydrocephalus, trapped spinal fluid over walls of scar tissue with the failure to absorb the much needed moisture on brain tissue for normal function.
After ten years of marriage, we had built a new home in Mesa, Arizona, raising three young children, and then suddenly faced the greatest test of our lives. Juan was classified as one of the worse cases ever seen from the effects of valley fever. His mortal existence was an extraordinary miracle. Juan and I wondered if we could physically and mentally endure the requirement of long hospitalizations, harsh medication and treatment, and inconceivable surgical procedures. We wondered if our family and marital vows to love and honor through sickness and health could endure such a catastrophic experience.
With a high risk of mortality, unknown medical outcomes, and the deterioration of my husband’s body, we put our faith to the test. We questioned why we were meant to live through this horrifying experience and then learned that we were meant to live and tell about the ordeal. We called upon the Lord to carry us through the turbulent storms we are often warned about. With the Lord’s help we found unconditional love, moral strength and the power of enduring miracles.