The Heymann Family Journal

A drunk man wearing a clown suite decided to take a nap on my front porch today. My kids didn’t know what they should do. I called our dog Mickey (he is all bark). I opened the door and said Hello. The man woke up, shook my hand and went on his way. Thank God for Mickey! I hope he makes it home safely. It is the Carnival season. It is sad to see someone so drunk at 3 in the afternoon. I also worry about having my kids driving tonight. God please keep my family safe on the road. I was in the car when my mom was hit by a drunk driver. I was maybe 6 years old, but I can still remember seeing that car moving towards us. There was nothing we could do…but grace saved us from getting hurt. We were hit.

The weather was really lovely today. It seemed more like May then February. Juergen and I took Jessica for a drive. I would have liked a walk but Jess wouldn't walk. The sky was almost unreal. I wish I could paint. My painter Nicole is starting to pack her bags. She leaves for America in a week. She will be there for 5 weeks. I look back at all our adventures together last year. She is well on the way to new adventures. What an exciting period in her life. And I have my ticket too. God willing, I will join Nicole in Oregon at the end of March (only for 10 days). I would love more time, but I'm grateful to have the opportunity. Juergen must take time off of work, and take care of the family alone. It is not very easy. So my adventure will be short, but sweet! I hope to get some work done in the garden this week. I also hope to be doing some teaching in March. So I must study. It's easy to study when it's cold. I never thought the weather would be so...

I went to a meeting with Sarah's teachers today. She is doing very well now. She is very organized. She is a very good influence in her class. And her grades are so much improved. It was a great thing that we held her back a grade. It has made a very big difference. It was like she could not find her feet, but now she is starting to run. And I am beginning to feel much better. I have been so sick for over 3 weeks (not the normal 10 days a normal cold takes). It has been frustrating for me. But I continue to rest. I push allot of juice and tea. And I am getting better. It just needs some more time. I do thank you for your kind words and prayers.

I have not been managing my day well. I took Jessica to her autism therapy this morning, and she would not get out of the car (this is the 4th straight week this has happened). I went into the center and started to cry. This is not my normal coping skill. I just don't feel well. I cannot handle anything well. I took the boys to their dentist appointment this afternoon. They have not taken good care for their teeth and the Dr yelled at me. I felt really awful. First he should yell at my sons. They are 16 years old and I do not brush their teeth for them. But normally I would not take the criticism so hard. I'm just feeling so sick (still). And it really has me feeling both emotionally and physically tired. I hate feeling so fragile, but unfortunately I am still sick.

I found flowers on the table this morning, and Jürgen took Nicole and me out for breakfast. What a sweetheart! I am greatly blessed!

Jessica is home again today because she refused to go to her appointment. I guess home is just too nice? I must admit it's frustrating for me. But it's out of my control. I'm sure she will go back to her routine eventually! Autism is not fun...I don't try to think about it much. I just try to flow with it. If I wasn't flexible I would break! But I’m warm, I’m safe, I’m loved. I love my daughter. I don’t have anything to complain about. The crocuses are already blooming in my garden. And I agree with Jessica, it is very nice at home.

I watched this with Sarah. We think she should open a noodle shop when she grows up.

This past week I was sick with a very bad cold. As I stayed in bed I watched a BBC documentary about the black plague that killed half of Europe between 1348-1350. And the world had no power to stop it. The Spanish flu killed over 15 million people in 1910. We all worried about H1N1 and H5N1. Nothing actually came of that...well not for most of us. Some people sadly died. But H7N9 is already much more dangerous then we realize. It makes me want to check my food supplies, and buy a face mask. But more importantly, I want to keep living as I should. No unspoken words, and with my heart right with God. January worst month in China’s human H7N9 outbreak read more HERE

The black plague killed half of Europe from 1348-1350. Can you imagine the fear and darkness, sadness and loss? We think ourselves so great, yet all the world could be lost. And the big cities felt it the most. I've been sick with a very bad cold. I got it from Jessica. I stay in bed and try to recover. I'm pretty sure I will recover. But it is grace.

Can you love a child you did not give birth to? Oh yes! You can love them so much it can amaze you! And love can grow even when it does not come easy. As many of you know, Sarah had RAD, Reactive attachment disorder. Nothing a load of really hard work, and time and the grace of God cannot fix! She turns 11 years old…. believe it or not…. tomorrow. That's right, 11! And you remember when we traveled to China to pick her up. I LOVE my girl! And I am so glad she is mine!

I was wondering what you would call an economy where you pay to work. Philip and Thomas started to deliver ad papers today. It's not actually easy to get a job delivering ad papers because it's one of the only jobs you can get in Germany if you are under the age of 18. So officially it's Thomas' job, but Philip and Sarah are both helping. And it's supposed to take 2 hours a week. It took at least 4 hours for them to sort the papers and deliver them. I'm guessing they will get faster as time goes on. Juergen bought them a 60€ cart to carry the papers on. And he also went with them to make sure they did it right. And because they will get paid so little for the job, we are considering paying Sarah for her role out of our own pocket (paying her to deliver papers). But I guess we are seeing it as a start. We are placing them all on the ladder of success. How can you learn to work if you do not have opportunity? And when you are faithful in one job (the fo...