I am thankful for a bit more freedom!

Driving home from my immunologist appointment, my heart was rejoicing. I have learned over the past six years that routine appointments can soon become anything but routine. This week, the appointment was no different.

It made me remember a few other trips home from appointments that weren’t routine over the years. There was the appointment when I found out I was allergic to common ingredients in soap. Ummm… what now? Thankfully, not all soaps. I laughed on that trip home. Ummm… soap? What now? We figured it out by God’s grace.

But, a year  and a half later I was driving home stunned to learn I was allergic to a chemical in more soaps and some clothes and some orthopedic devices and paper and elastic and… the list is seemingly endless. I laughed again out of the bizarre-ness of it all. We went back to the drawing board and figured out work-arounds. (Don’t worry, we found another safe soap and most clothes are safe.) Well, more correctly, we continue to find safe work-arounds.

This week, I laughed out of pure joy on the way home. Face masks have been my accessories for over nine years. Then, a new chemical allergy meant I could not wear them. The doctor said that I don’t have to find a replacement for them. I can finally (still carefully avoiding allergens, crowds, and germs) go without them. While there are many allergens to avoid, this is freedom. Wow!

I am thankful for this freedom and praying to use it for God’s glory!