Exceptional Spirit
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
Jeanna
and I went to Dr. Farrell’s office the following Wednesday for a
Dr. Farrell’s phone rang. It was her receptionist. Dr. Tantry was on the line. Dr. Farrell used the external speaker on the phone for the conversation. The two doctors spoke for several minutes in “doctor lingo.” Jeanna and I picked out what we could understand. Dr. Tantry mentioned all of the tests she had run and where they were going. It would take weeks for the results. She talked about the next MRI and mentioned that it was a research procedure. We would not be charged for it and we would not have to go through the insurance company for approval. It was up to us. A knot developed in my stomach. “What was she saying?” She kept talking and mentioned the other child who had the similar condition. Jeanna interrupted and asked, “How is she doing?” Dr. Tantry calmly and solemnly replied, “She is not with us anymore. She passed away about a year ago.” It was hard to swallow. I think I always knew I would hear this information one day, but I was not prepared for it. I asked, “Dr. Tantry, how long does he have?” She said, “Everyone is different so we really do not know an exact time. You’ve told me that you want me to be completely honest with you. If you want me to give you an answer based on my own experience though I will tell you. He will probably have at least six months but he could have as much as 10 years. My honesty requires me to say that I would plan for the shorter term.” She talked more. We tried to listen. In tears, Jeanna did ask one more question that I can recall, “Dr. Tantry, you mentioned the little girl that died had a brother. How is he?” Dr. Tantry said, “Mrs. Bullins, I regretfully say, the eldest child passed away at age 7. Her brother is 4 and is showing signs of the same degenerative neurological disease.” We asked, “How will it happen?” Dr. Tantry said, “Death will be peaceful. Corbin’s heart will stop beating. His brain will stop sending the signals to his lungs to breathe. There will probably be no warning. You may put him to bed and he will simply not wake.” I’m sure there was much more said, but my brain buried that information somewhere in my soul. We just couldn’t take any more details.
We had been down so many paths searching for answers. In a way, it was a relief. We’d opened so many doors looking for a diagnosis. Up to that point, our answer had always been, “We don’t know.” Well, we finally got the answer. It surely was not the one we wanted. But it did tell us where we stood.
Men and women are different. Jeanna and I walked out of the office and she said, “I’m going back to work. I can’t deal with this now. Let’s talk about it tonight.” Not me. I couldn’t face work. I called Chief Hensley and told him, I would not be in that day. We talked on the phone and I told him what had been said. He said, “Take what you need. The fire department will be here when you are ready to come back.”
I sat in our family room and cried. I thought of all the things Corbin and I would never get to do. I begged God to take my life and not his. I hope I wasn’t disrespectful to God but I probably was. Why would he allow this to happen? Was I being punished? What did I do to deserve this? I prayed. I cried. And I prayed and cried some more. A father is not supposed to have to endure the death of his son. And that’s when it hit me. Think about what I just said. A father is not supposed to have to endure the death of his son. Who else did that? This is where my belief in God was tested. Maybe not by God intentionally, but it was tested. Did I really believe what I had seen and heard in the Bible or was I just putting on a façade? Jesus took m
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
Exceptional Spirit is a story of unconditional love between a father and a son and the oneness developed between a husband and wife when God is put in the center of the relationship. The newlyweds, David and Jeanna, envision the American Dream of promising careers, a new home, and children to love. However, the couple soon experienced a trauma beyond their control and began to listen to God’s soft voice. Not long after, they realized He was preparing them for a much more difficult battle over the horizon.
David and Jeanna’s son, Corbin, was born a year after Jeanna was declared cancer free. The first-time parents soon recognized Corbin was developmentally delayed. They searched for answers but the medical community kept giving the same answer, “We don’t know.” David and Jeanna learned to accept the fact of Corbin’s special needs. A mother’s perspective is that of acceptance. A father’s however, is that of teaching their son to be a man. The story shows the internal battle of a man with himself. God spoke through many along their path of acceptance. By age four, Corbin began to lose motor skills and show signs his body was weakening. Corbin soon began taking multiple medications and spent countless hours in hospital examining rooms. A prognosis was received after years of searching and the apparent outcome was grim.
David and Jeanna
strived to keep their faith at the center of their relationship. They speak from the heart. Their Christian faith was easy when things
were going as planned. But when that
faith was challenged, when their souls ached for solace, and God did not seem
to answer, their faith was difficult to maintain. Tough decisions had to be made and in the end
they had to make the unimaginable decision to give their child back to God. But Jesus silently revealed inner peace
through a child sent by God.
About the Author
David Bullins, his wife Jeanna,
and their children, Nate and CJ, live in David’s hometown,