I wanted to send you a thank you to let you know that I am grateful and humbled by all the prayers and good wishes sent to us by fellow Treehouse members through the Open Thread and the Prayer room.

Please know that we felt your prayers, love and well wishes. Both “the Studmuffin” and I were filled with a supreme sense of calm and true inner peace. We felt bathed in your love, your positivity, and your hope, and drew tremendous strength from it. 

Studmuffin’s surgery went well, and he is resting comfortably. The surgeon told us it would take at least a few days before we know whether or not the surgery “took”, but we are both confident and hopeful.

This whole experience has brought home to us the blessings that God showers upon us, even though at the time, we may not realize they are blessings. Our “Number One Son”, who is headed to China in about two weeks, suddenly began to experience dental pain this weekend. Someone we met through HB stepped up and was able to find time to fit him into his busy schedule today, and it turned out to be a blessing — it could have been a more serious issue, had he traveled to China without this being diagnosed and treated.

There is a reason that people are brought into our lives. We can either accept and embrace it, or fight it. We wholeheartedly embrace the people that God has sent us through venues like HB, the Honeytrail and the Treehouse.

These are challenging times that we face, and we must accept it with grace, but also with resolute purpose. The road ahead will test all of us, but we are stronger because of it.

While we were at the hospital, we met several families who told us, unprompted, that they consider themselves to be part of “the underground resistence”. We are not alone. We are all determined to prevail. Know that, and find peace and comfort in that.

One Dad in the surgical suite waiting room told me he, for some reason, has been the target of pollsters who want to determine Obama’s popularity. He always states that he “loves” Obama, supports him, will vote for him in 2012, but disagrees with his policies.

Consider this “our” underground version of “Operation Chaos”. The next time a pollster calls, I fully intend to claim I, too, “love” Obama, but have issues with his “policies”. Let them be lulled into a false sense of complacency for 2012, and let’s be sure to make sure the Republicans and Independents continue to work hard to return our great Nation back towards the path envisioned by our Founding Fathers.

Once again, thank you so much for your kind wishes and prayers. We felt them, and it was humbling, yet at the same time, a source of sustenance and strength. We are grateful for all of you, and hope to soon have the chance to meet more of you in person.

In the meantime —

“Fix Bayonets” !!!

— YTZ