Day 390

      Katie has been sick the past few days.  She came down with a low grade fever Friday evening.  Her fever broke last night, but she is still having tummy troubles, so she wasn't able to go to church today.  (Which was a huge disappointment to her!) 
     I recently commented about Katie getting older and being able to verbalize her feelings more.  This has been so evident during this past month!  Katie has been very nauseous since her last round of treatments.  This caught us by surprise.  Katie has always gotten nauseous after treatments.  However, this time was different in that she has been telling us she feels like she was going to throw-up (daily) over an extended period of time, and she has regularly requested her anti-nausea medicine.  Her chemo hasn't changed, it is the same as before, so we know it isn't that.  I believe she has probably always gotten this nauseous (for this long) after treatments, but now because she is older, she is better able to recognize and express how she is feeling.  She is also able to tell us what medicine tastes "yucky" with different kinds of liquids.  What a great blessing this is!  What a relief it must be for her - to be able to tell us more clearly how she feels and what she needs.  I am so glad for that!  I know it is a relief for me!  It was so hard when she was younger to know (guess) at what she was feeling and what she needed.  When this started a year ago, she didn't even know what nauseous meant - now she does - which isn't that great - but if she is going to be nauseous - which she is - then it is great that she can tell us how she is feeling!
     It is a comforting thought to know that God knows us and our needs.  I know He knows what Katie needs (and needed) even if and when I don't.  It is also comforting to know that He knows what I need (and needed) even if and when I don't.   Elder Bednar said: “The Lord knows who we really are, what we really think, what we really do, and who we really are becoming” (“Things as They Really Are,” CES fireside for young adults, May 3, 2009). 
Neal A. Maxwell said: "God has known you individually...for a long, long time (see D&C 93:23).  He has loved you for a long, long time.  He not only knows the names of all the stars (see Psalm 147:4; Isaiah 40:26); He knows your names and all your heartaches and your joys!  ("Remember How Merciful the Lord Hath Been," Ensign, May 2004, 46).