My eldest son was about to celebrate his ninth birthday. He had attended a fantastic performing arts camp. My wife and I bought Happy Meals for the entire ensemble in honor of “MacDonald the Elder’s” special day. We had an announcement that we couldn’t wait to share…
In the Twinkling of an Eye
— Joe MacDonald
Rev. Dr. Joe K. MacDonald is a pastor in the New Mexico Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. He and his wife, Cazandra, live in Belen, New Mexico, along with their youngest son, Caeleb, and two fur babies, Laggie and Hildie. Both of Joe’s sons (the oldest is Julian) have severe hemophilia A, factor VIII deficiency. Julian was diagnosed in 1996 and Caeleb in 2006. Joe serves on the Board of the Sangre de Oro Chapter of the National Hemophilia Foundation. Joe’s goal is to help his sons and others in the community use their voices to help improve the quality of life for those with bleeding disorders.
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For years, I saw wheelchairs and other mobility devices as symbols of limitation — signs of everything a person could no longer do. Then my youngest son, Caeleb, needed a wheelchair due to complications of hemophilia, and I began to see it through his eyes. What I feared would…
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I have diabetes and give myself insulin shots every evening. There is not much to the process. I draw up the insulin into a syringe and find a place in the area around my stomach. Once I choose the site, I plunge the tiny needle into my skin. No harm,…
My youngest son wanted to play baseball. “Come on, Dad!” he pleaded. “I will wear a helmet and knee pads and anything else.” I wrestled with how to answer him. My son had a considerable complication called an inhibitor. Failure to make the correct decision might cause a horrific bleed…
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My son gets off the bus. I look at his face, hoping to see an indication of how his first camp experience went. Did he have a good time? What kind of life lessons did he learn being away from home for a whole week? I looked for answers…
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