To Walk With The Angels

For he shall give his angels charge over you,

 to keep you in all your ways.

Psalm 91:11

We had the profound pleasure last weekend to walk on hallowed ground...

we walked in the footsteps of angels.

There were approximately 357
registered participants for the DFW walk.
There were 29 walks around the United States
and over a million dollars were raised!
I am not 100 % sure of these statistics,
but will correct them when I am.

(Scotty is in the very back on the right just to the left 

of the man in the red shirt who is standing by the tree)

A small portion of Team Scotty!

The rest of "his people" were walking with him in spirit.

Team Scotty raised $2000 which is astonishing.

What is even more incredible is that  25% of the

donations were from people that we have never even met.

People who in some way have been touched by his story...
People who have been touched by him.

We are overcome with gratitude.

♥And this guy was a ROCK STAR♥

He was happy, smiley and full of hugs.

 He even participated in the walk...

no bribery required!!

 This gorgeous, precious little angel
was the highlight of his day.

 They played and hugged and played and hugged...

such sweetness and innocence and pure joy.

It was breathtaking to watch.

Balloons were released in remembrance of
all the angels who have left us too soon.

This past year there have been so many...too many.

So we walk.

We walk with hope.

Hope for a lifetime free of seizures.
Hope that we will hear the sound of our angel's voices.

Hope that someday all our angels
will walk side by side with us.
Hope for a future that releases our children
 from the constraints of Angelman Syndrome.

There is hope in dreams, imagination,
and in the courage of those who wish 
to make those dreams a reality.
Jonas Salk

I couldn't help but notice all the young
families just starting their journey.
I don't envy them the years ahead.
The doctors that don't have answers, the medications that don't help, the endless round of therapies, the testing, the search for a school...a teacher...anyone who will understand their child and most importantly love their child, the constant battle to make sure your child is getting an appropriate education, the unanswered questions about the future, the frustration, the tears and the sleepless nights.

I don't envy them at all.
I guess if we look back there are a few things we would have done differently,
but that is no different than any other parent.
Suffice it to say that we are tired.
As my grandmother used to say, "We are plum wore out."

Though to us Scotty will always be our little guy, he was definitely one of the old folks at the walk.
Unlike the young families we met today, we are finally at a stage that we can look back and  say with confidence that we have done everything in our power to give Scotty the best life possible.  Our journey is far from over...it is just different now.  Sure we still have frustration and tears and sleepless nights, but we have settled onto the path that God has carved out for us. At this point all we can do is take one step at a time, walking in faith, walking in hope and walking in love.

"Walk by faith, and not by sight."
2Corinthians 5:7

If you would like to learn more about Angelman Syndrome click the link below.
ANGELMAN SYNDROME FACTS