Learning from The Mooney Family :)

There is this Mooney family from Arkansas, USA, who has inspired me a lot today! Have you heard about them? If you haven't, I'd like to recommend you to read their blog at http://www.mattandginny.blogspot.com. Read the blog from its first post all the way through until the newest one. Or, you can search their story at www.youtube.com. Just search for "Eliot Mooney". Why are they so special?

Okay, I know about them from Oprah Winfrey Show that I watched this morning on Starworld. There's a story about Matt and Ginny Mooney who has made a blog and a video about their late son, Eliot Mooney. Their son was born with Trisomy 18 syndrome.

Trisomy 18 syndrome is also called Edwards syndrome (or Edward's syndrome), and is the second most common trisomy, after Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome). It occurs in about 1:5000 to 1:8000 births. Trisomy 18 syndrome is due to the presence of an extra #18 chromosome, meaning that BABY MOONEY has three chromosomes in the eighteenth position instead of the normal two.Unlike Down syndrome, Edwards Syndrome is usually fatal, with most of the babies dying before birth and those who do make it to birth typically living only a few days. However, a small number of babies (<10%) live at least one year. (Mooney, 2006)

The Mooney family said that the doctors whom they went to didn't want to give them hope that their son would actually be born, because trisomy 18 is like a death verdict. But as God was willing, Eliot Hartman Mooney was born on July 20th, 2006 at 4:59pm with 6lb weight and 18 ½ inches tall. Because of his sickness, he has to be attached to some tubes the whole time. But, Matt and Ginny were still so happy to welcome the miracle of their lives. So, starting on the day Eliot was born, Matt had written letters to his son, enjoying each and every day with him (you can watch it on youtube or read them on their blog). For 99 days Eliot was here in the world until He was gone with Jesus (Matt said) on October 27, 2010. During his life in this world and even in his funeral, Matt and Ginny were always celebrating him. Of course there were tears, but their joy and gratitude overshadowed their tears. This couple really made me learn about celebrating my life, with every single thing that happens in it, either happiness or sadness. Before Eliot's funeral, The Mooney asked their friends and relatives not to wear black in the funeral. The song that was played during the funeral is "Everything's Alright", not a common song for a funeral :). And they all flew 99 balloons as a sign of 99 days that Eliot had been in this world.

Wow! what a very very touching story! And one sentence that I really remember said by Ginny on the interview with Oprah was, "I told Matt that I'd be sad later. I didn't have enough time to be sad now when Eliot was still here." Wow 1000x! That sentence reminded me of one verse from the bible :
"Sebab itu janganlah kamu kuatir akan hari besok, karena hari besok mempunyai kesusahannya sendiri. Kesusahan sehari cukuplah untuk sehari." (Matius 6:34)
"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34, NIV)

The Mooney family has taught me a lot to enjoy the life that God has given to me. Compared to Eliot, my life is way better (according to me) but this family never felt that way. For them, Eliot is a miracle, a blessing, and they have a perfect life together, eventhough Eliot has been separated from them. They decided to enjoy every single day with Eliot before he was taken from them, instead of grieving and complaining. They believe that Eliot was a grace from God, that He can take whenever He wants to (it reminds me of the story of Job/Ayub). They believe that they will meet again one day.

So, here I am, Lord,
feeling ashamed because of my complaints and whimpers even for only a little drawback or difficulty
I want to thank You for teaching me about gratitude,
not to complain about my life, whatever happens in it.
Thank You for teaching me not to be worried,
and to celebrate life in Your way,
to be joyful and happy all the time,
because You have given me such a beautiful life.
And all that I have comes from YOU alone. You can take them back, whenever You want to
Thank You for Mooney's family, God, thank you for a beautiful baby Eliot
who has taught me a lot of things.
THANK YOU, GOD.

And you, wanna join me? :)