![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.livinginsidethetestimony.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/62447050_10215054620103114_3626669658892926976_o.jpg?resize=714%2C714\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nA Short Story…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This pic is from 1993. Ten years prior to that, William had a near fatal head injury, an epidural hematoma (bleeding around the brain) requiring emergency surgery to save his life. The neurosurgeon had to do a craniotomy where he opened up part of William\u2019s skull to remove the hematoma that reduced the pressure on his brain. By the way, that was May 17, 1983, a few days before high school graduation. William and I weren\u2019t even talking to each other at the time. We had broken up like many teenagers do in high school\u2026. On again, off again\u2026 we just couldn\u2019t get it right, so we were going our separate ways forever after high school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BUT THEN THIS HAPPENED! God has a way of getting our attention, doesn\u2019t he? I had no idea he had even been injured. My brother Dennis was home from California and heard about it before I did. He just causally asked one evening at home \u201cDid y\u2019all hear about that Collier boy who got hit upside the head?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
TIME STOPPED! MY HEART DROPPED! Somebody please help me\u2026 The rest is a blur. Fast forward a bit, and there I am walking down that long hallway all by myself to that scary neurotrauma ICU where I see many Colliers standing at his bedside. (Remember, we were NOT a couple at this time. It was way over for us.) They saw me walk in, and EVERYBODY left. I don\u2019t recall any words spoken. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There he lay with my shattered heart scattered in thousands of pieces all over his ICU bed. How could it come to this? I don\u2019t recall much of anything from that first visit except that he appeared lifeless, his beautiful brown eyes almost swollen shut, and that gauze dressing wrapped around his head like a turban. His head was huge, machines were everywhere, and I was afraid he wouldn\u2019t be able to speak or even recognize me. Or if he did recognize me, would he want me to stay? After all, I had broken his heart in high school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Well, I can\u2019t tell you what happened next because I don\u2019t remember. To this very day, I still get a headache when I think about it. Of course he doesn\u2019t remember because he was recovering from brain surgery after almost losing his life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
All I know is this. Surgery was over. He was recovering. We were beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our true love affair began at Methodist Hospital as he continued to improve over the next few days. He went home 12 days after surgery. Our high school romance, as shaky as it was, just didn\u2019t matter anymore. We had fallen in love in 9th grade. We fell in love again at Methodist Hospital. And yes, I do remember some of those conversations, unlike the first one in ICU. Suffice it to say, many tears were shed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
God saved William\u2019s life that night for me. So when I say I just love that man sooooo much, and he is the absolute love of my life, now you know why. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ok, getting back to this pic. This was 1993, 10 years after our life changing experience right before high school graduation. By now we had been married 7 years and were expecting our first little bundle of joy. (I\u2019m pregnant with Jordan on this pic\u2026 lol) So when I see pictures like this, sometimes it brings back all sorts of memories for me. This one opened the floodgates! I like looking back and reflecting on where we began, what we\u2019ve endured, and where we are now. There are trials and tribulations in all marriages, and ours certainly isn\u2019t exempt. But this one thing I do know. When I look into those beautiful eyes, I can still remember 1983 and what it felt like when I thought it was the possibility that I would have to live my life without William. I know there is an ear-to-ear scar all the way across William\u2019s scalp that no one can see underneath his hair, but I can feel it. It\u2019s an ever-present reminder of God\u2019s grace and mercy. I can also feel the lifetime of love that we\u2019ve shared. And even though Jordan wasn\u2019t born yet, when I look at this picture, I know he\u2019s there inside me. That\u2019s where love begins \u2013 inside. Jordan will be 25 next week. William and I will celebrate our 33rd anniversary in August. All I can say is #ThankYouLord<\/a>! So yeah, I actually wrote all that on FaceBook as the caption when I updated my profile picture. That’s why I prefer FaceBook over Twitter and Instagram. I haven’t mastered the craft of brevity yet. My friends know I tend to be long-winded once I get started, and my posts often go on much longer than most people’s attention span. But that doesn’t stop me. I continue writing anyway hoping that someone will read what I have to say and get something out of it. That’s really my reason for copying this post to my blog. I hope when you read this, you will get something out of it too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We all have stories to share to help inspire and encourage others. Think about your own life. I’m pretty sure you have many stories to tell. What has God done in your life where you have absolutely no doubt it had to be a blessing from him? Many times he blesses us beyond measure without us even asking. He knows us just that well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for that little bundle of joy hiding inside me at the time this picture was taken, he’s now 25 years old. This is our precious little firstborn, Jordan William Collier. He’s getting married next year and is well on his way to becoming the man God created him to be. I encourage all of you parents to continue praying for your children. There is greatness inside all of them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from him. <\/strong><\/p>Psalms 127:3 (NLT version)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n I would love to hear from you guys. What stories do you have to share that will encourage someone else? After all, we all live inside testimonies meant to be shared with others. Thank you for living inside this testimony with me. God has certainly been way too good to me, so I’ve got to tell it!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I posted this picture on FaceBook earlier this month as my profile picture along with a rather long caption. I called it “A Short Story…” Yes, I know it’s rather odd to have such a long post on FaceBook, and I’m fairly certain most of my friends didn’t even read it before they clicked like. 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