Coincidence or divine intervention?

co·in·ci·dence (kō-ĭn'sĭ-dəns, -děns'): a striking occurrence of two or more events at one time apparently by mere chance.

Over six months ago, as I began facilitating two large smoking cessation classes at Akron Children's, my dad was admitted to Akron General for what would end up being a series of surgeries for preventable, smoking-related illnesses.

June, 2006: A quintuple by-pass to repair heart disease (smoking causes vasoconstriction of blood vessels, limiting blood flow and hardening arteries);

October 2006: followed by a sternal rewire (emphysema, from 50+ years of smoking, caused my dad to cough so violently that he broke the internal wires holding his sternum, or breastbone, together after his heart surgery. Only one lone wire remained intact after a mere four months post-surgery);

November 2006: followed by a total sternal resection from nosecomial, or hospital-aquired staph infection (translation = his entire breast plate was eaten away by staph infection so badly that his suture line burst open one night a week after his release from the hospital. He soaked through a pillow and three T-shirts in an hour. Because of massive damage to bone and tissue, his entire breastbone was removed and replaced with part of his abdominis rectus or stomach muscle. He couldn't move his arms for three weeks, had to undergo physical therapy, and was slow to heal. Because of vasoconstriction, smoking reduces blood flow, thereby reducing the effectivness and speed with which tissue can heal. During post-op, he developed pneumothorax, or collapsed lung, and a tube had to be inserted into his side and deep into his lung to reinflate it. That tube didn't come out for over a week. Other tubes remained in his body for over a month. He remained connected to a wall vacuum on the 4th floor of Akron General for over six weeks, through his 67th birthday and Thanksgiving);

followed by November 2006 repairative surgery to patch the hole in his lung caused from the pneumothorax. Part of the abdominis rectus muscle was again resected to patch this hole. (Smoking connection? As an emphysema patient, his lungs were in poor condition, making him more susceptible to pneumothorax; and remember the word for the day: vasoconstriction. Reduced blood flow = slow wound healing = hole in lung won't heal.

I prayed for God to show me what I need in my life to reduce the stress and to show me what it is I am ultimately supposed to be doing in life.

November, 2006, I learned that I would not be refunded at Children's, but that funding would be picked up at Akron General to facilitate smoking cessation classes and work with docs in the Heart Group (my dad's providers!) and Westside Family Practice in helping them advocate for their patients to stop smoking.

Fast forward to the present. I started my new job at AGMC last week. Facilitated the first week of a new set of smoking cessation classes. And today, my mother called me to tell me my dad has been coughing up blood.

Plug in the words "cough" and "blood" in a Google search. I tell you the results right now, and it's nothing good. Hemoptysis: coughing up blood. The list of things that can cause this is many and includes simple things like bronchitis, irritation of the throat from violent coughing or pneumonia to more serious things like blood clot in the lung, bronchiectasis, esophageal cancer, lung cancer, Tuberculosis, and Wegener's granulomatosis.

First of all, my parents, scared shitless by the recent events, have set a quit date (one of many) for next week.

Second, as a prayer for all the world to see, God, please, please, please ease up on my poor dad! Because I don't think he can take much more. No, I know he can't take any more. This once strong, proud and stoic Marine is now thin, pale, and listless. He all but gave up after the last surgery. And, I know this is selfish, but I can't give him up yet. My kids deserve to remember their grandpa. I never got to know my grandpa because he died when I was very young from smoking and cancer. I can't explain to my kids the dynamic, strong, stubborn and fiercely loyal person my dad is. I want them to know that for themselves.

Third, I know I am doing exactly what I need to be doing with my life. I got the message, God. And I ain't goin' no where.