Naim is growing excited about going to the West Bank to stay with the other members of our community from Gaza, especially one friend of his named Leen, but the last step before we can do that is completing his last procedure, a circumcision. Today he had his pre-surgery clinic at Sheba Hospital.

After we arrived, we were sent to five different secretary desks before eventually getting to the right place; a circumcision for a non-newborn seems to be an alien concept for lots of doctors and nurses, the biggest question I have received about it is “Why?” They don’t quite understand it, but they are always willing to help us out. Naim was happy to wait once we finally got to sit down after getting to the right secretary, he occupied himself by looking at a picture book, and attributing different kids and staff at Shevet to the characters.

I also asked Naim’s mother how much he knew about this operation since he seemed to be in a good mood for such a procedure. She explained it to him, she told me, but neither of us think he understands, when she made a joke about it he just naively smiled and nodded his head.

After some shenanigans we finally got to go and speak with the nurse, after a few tests and questions, we were given the all-clear for his surgery! It should be a straightforward operation, done in half an hour, but his blood-thinners could pose some issues if they have not worn off by tomorrow, however, doctors expect them to not be present by then. He didn’t have to stay the night in the hospital tonight but will need to be back bright and early at 6:30 am for his surgery.

After that, we went downstairs, and Naim and I playfought/wrestled in a foam play area, while I hate to admit it, he won, but I could not compete with his unmatched strength and might. Our community will continue to pray for my recovery from my wounds, as well as Naim’s recovery from the surgery.

Naim has had another echo today, and hopefully the last for a few months, from what the doctors have concluded. We started the day off with an early 8 am departure as traffic from construction has turned our half-hour commute into a nearly two-hour commute. Upon arriving at the hospital, Naim went in for his echo after a short wait, although it seems he got a bit upset or wasn’t feeling well, because when the echo tech began the echo, much to his protest, he threw up, promptly ending the echo, which is exactly what he wanted. It reminded me of a vulture, how they will do the same of throwing up when they feel threatened; and it works for them, and for Naim.

Unfortunately, less than half an hour later, Naim was taken back into the echo room, but I was there with him to keep him distracted and to keep his spirits up. He seems most afraid of the prospect of pain, but as each step went forward he remembered that none of it hurt, and this put him at ease. The echo seemed to go well but the attending doctor was concerned about his cough, so she sent us to get a chest x-ray so the pulmonologist could stop by and talk to us.

Surprised by the spontaneity, we seized the opportunity and went down to complete his x-ray. After the x-ray, which Naim was cooperative for, we came back up and we occupied ourselves by playing. He gave me and his mother some rainbow loom friendship bracelets made by a worker at Sheba, and we played some football (soccer for my fellow Americans) with a ball the hospital staff gave him. After a wait, we spoke with his doctors, hearing that there was no fluid in his lungs so we just needed to watch his cough, and his echo showed no issues in his heart. Dr. Tirosh, at the end of the conversation, asked the difficult question of how Umm Naim’s family is. Around two weeks ago her three other children, along with her sister and sister’s family, were killed by Israeli airstrikes in Al Maghazi Refugee Camp, and the wound is still fresh. They shared a moment of comfort and grief, that brings sadness that it must happen, but there is joy in our solution to it. Two women from two different backgrounds, but born in a common conflict, from states set apart, grieving together and the passion and care coming out to comfort the other simply out of love.

And this is simply a reflection of the love of the Messiah, a radical love set apart from any context besides being made in the image of God. I am again reminded in a verse that I take comfort from daily in this situation, Revelation 2:14;

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

I imagine the love which wipes away each tear as a love we see a glimpse of daily, but one that is not powerful enough to treat the problem, but wholly cure it. We see a glimpse of this love in so many ways, a caring embrace, a gift of a ball to a young boy, or a nurse impressively playing soccer with Naim while holding a hot cup of coffee. I look forward to this promise, to the resurrection and the beginning of an endless and perfect life, where death is only a memory in an eternity. We see this love in so many ways, a caring embrace, a gift of a ball to a young boy, or a nurse impressively playing soccer with Naim while holding a hot cup of coffee.

Naim has had a long, winding treatment process at Sheba Hospital, with a slow recovery, a war breaking out, several infections, and different treatments being explored – today was just another step forward in his recovery.

Today he went into the plastic surgery clinic to make sure the scar from his last surgery was healing well, and he got the clean bill of health. We will continue putting some antibiotic ointment on for a bit longer, but Naim is doing well.

He spent the rest of the day at the hospital playing and having fun.

We had a lovely time with Naim and his mother at Sheba Hospital today. Naim showed us his wonderful art masterpieces that he has crafted and also his collection of many balloons. We even played a rally of “volleyball” with his balloons. He lovingly shared with us all his toys including bubbles, balloons, and craft supplies.

Naim’s smile is so contagious, and with all the activities, it made me forget that we were in a hospital. I was reminded that Naim is God’s masterpiece, created beautifully and uniquely in His image.

We hope to welcome him to our community home soon, but we are still waiting on a few things including a dental check-up.

Naim’s discharge has been set back a few times now, and today followed this pattern as our Sheba team decided to go the extra mile in Naim’s care, and are now examining a dental problem, but we are hoping this will only extend his stay by one or two days. After running a few final tests last week, they found his blood’s iron level was a little low, and one of Naim’s teeth started to hurt, which the staff immediately attended to, so with these two factors they decided to keep Naim for a few days longer.

Naim is not upset about needing to stay a few more days, he is starting to like the hospital because he gets a bunch of toys, and he is making friends with all the doctors, and the patients as well. He especially likes his roommate Adam, another Arab boy; today Adam was somewhat sedated so he couldn’t play with Naim, but still he liked to stay close by. Speaking about playing, Naim is getting stronger by the minute it seems, he is walking and running, eating without trouble, and jumping around. It is nice to see this lively little boy get his energy back, even if this means he will cause his mom a lot of stress now.

In the next few days, we look forward to Naim joining us in Ashdod, where he can be reunited with his favorite Shevet employee, our dog ‘Shevie’, whom he absolutely adores.

Seeing Naim and his mom made me very happy today at the Sheba Hospital. When we entered his hospital room, we saw Naim had a big smile on his face. I was so happy and relieved to see Naim doing better and smiling again.

He had some stomach cramps and nausea last night because his belly is still very tense. Will you join us in prayer for Naim, that he will feel better soon?

Today two of my coworkers and I came to Sheba Hospital to visit Naim and his mother.

When we arrived at Naim’s room, he was very happy to see us, he had a big smile on his face and even his mother was happy to see us, it was a nice moment to be with them and to be able to comfort his mother in the middle of this difficult situation. 

She was telling us that Naim is recovering very well and that in the coming days the doctors are going to move him from the ICU to the Pediatric ward. He is even eating normally and if everything continues like this soon they will take him off oxygen support, he is also receiving physical therapies for recovery.

Another thing that the mother was telling us is that yesterday when the war between Israel and Gaza started Naim was very scared and crying a lot because they heard the sirens sounding and the rockets falling, today he was calmer and was even asking how Shevi was, Shevi is our little dog here in our house in Ashdod that Naim loved to play with, so we use that tool to encourage him to be strong, recover soon and he can come to our house to play with Shevi.

Please continue praying for Naim, that he continues to recover very well and even for Peace and strength for his mother during this difficult time.

Today I visited Naim and his mother at Sheba Hospital. When I walked in the room, the nurses were just trying to draw blood from Naim. He was struggling with this procedure a lot and the nurses and his mother had to hold him down so they could draw blood. Naim is very strong.

The doctors took him off the drugs. This is a good sign for now and it is going towards improvement, but because of this he is suffering more now. He is on some medication, but it is not as strong. We pray for a fast recovery for Naim!

Today I went to Sheba Hospital to visit Naim and his mother. Yesterday when we left the ICU, I was very relieved that he was getting so much better, so today was a shock to see him with the inhaler and unconscious. Apparently Naim threw up the whole night, and his oxygen was very bad. He has trouble breathing because there is fluid in his chest.

Today they took an x-ray to see what exactly is going on, but we did not hear the result. Naim’s mother was still pretty okay with the situation becouse he is not on the vent again, but we still pray that she gets new strength.

We pray that Naim gets better, and that his oxygen level remains stable.

Today, when we arrived at Sheba Hospital, we were met with a great surprise: Naim had just gotten extubated.

His mother was feeling very cheerful and Naim was waving at us as well. Naim will now have to recover, but we all thanked God for this welcome development. The nurse then started taking care of him and it was time for us to say goodbye again.

God willing, Naim will continue improving in the days to come.

Today coworkers JoMa and I visited Naim and his mother at Sheba Hospital. Naim’s mother was very nice, and was happy to see us.

The doctors told us that Naim is stable and recovering from the very difficult surgery. They said that his abdomen is still very tense, but this is normal after that kind of operation. In the next few days, they will wean him from the ventilator and hope that everything will go well.

We praise God that Naim is recovering and getting better.

Yesterday I wrote about Naim’s check in; today, he had his surgery. It was a long and tricky surgery. Naim’s organs have been in a sac outside his sternum since his birth, and placing them inside his body caused a rise in pressure that his heart was not accustomed to dealing with. However, after about five hours, the surgeon told us that the procedure was over and that it had gone well, praise God.

Today Naim came back to our community. He has a hernia repair surgery tomorrow at Sheba Hospital that will finally put his external organ sac back into his body.

He spent most of today getting checked in; and he screamed bloody murder when getting his blood test, a rare change of pace for the normally good tempered boy.

I’ll write more about that tomorrow in his surgery blog; for now keep him in prayers as he prepares for surgery.

Today coworker Bjorn and I went to Sheba Hospital for an echo appointment with Naim and his mother.  We got to know Naim a little bit better over the last few days, as he stayed with us in our community home in Ashdod. It was a fun time with him. He really loves our community dog named Shevie and wanted to go on walks all the time with her. Yesterday we had a lot of fun playing in the waves in the sea and enjoying the good weather at the beach.

In the hospital, we got the chance to play with the cars; he will be a doll driver. Also, we found out that he loves to play the drums, which was pretty fun.

At the appointment, everything went well; the echo and the ECG looked very good, and the doctor was very nice. She cleared him for his plastic surgery in October, which made the mother really happy.

After a full day in the hospital, we could bring them back to Erez Crossing point, so Naim can be with his family again.

Today was a disappointing day for Naim. Despite an early start and good punctuality, unrelated delays at the border meant that he arrived to Sheba Hospital too late for his plastic surgery clinic, and the doctor left without examining him. Naim’s organs are presently hanging in a skin sack attached to him, and this surgery would finally place them securely inside–but now he’ll have to wait at least another two months before it can happen. Pray that he’ll remain well until then.

Naim returned to Israel for the first time in several months. He was met by Shevie, whom he had a happy reunion with.

Today was the first time I met Naim, and what an impression he has made on me already. What a beautiful boy Naim is! He and I spent most of the day together, and he was overflowing with joy. He fed fish, he played the drums, he shook me with enthusiasm when he saw a giant car transport truck. He helped Daveen get down from a ledge, he pulled me around to see all the interesting things, and he gave me pretzels and called them cigarettes. He danced after his x-ray was done, and he smiled the whole day. He is a young man who rejoices in life.

Today was spent testing and checking him in in preparation for his catheterization tomorrow. We ask God for a smooth and safe procedure!

Today I met again little Naim and his lovely mother. We brought them to Sheba Hospital for Naim’s Cath admission.

Naim underwent an ECG, an oxygen test and his blood pressure was measured.  Afterwards, Naim was examined by his doctor.

In our waiting times, Naim enjoyed the time to play.  He especially liked the cars in the waiting area.

Soon we were able to go to the Secondary Pediatric ICU where Naim and his mom got a room and were admitted to the ward. Please pray for his Cath tomorrow, for strength and courage for his mom as well as wisdom and success for the doctors and staff.

Actually, the catheterization of Naim should have taken place tomorrow. Mentally, Naim and his mother had already prepared themselves for it. After Naim had done an echo and X-ray in preparation and had been finally admitted, we received the message: “Unfortunately all catheterizations have been canceled for this week – I’m very sorry.”

That was a disappointment. Nevertheless, Naim’s mother kept her composure. “It’s God’s decision. Maybe God saves Naim from a bad turn of the catheterization tomorrow.” I have respect for this calm and trust in God’s goodness.

At least Naim and I made good use of the waiting time today. We walked into the games area together and Naim obviously had a good time. Let us pray together that Naim’s catheterization can take place soon and that God will continue to guide us all.

Early this morning I made my way to Sheba Medical Center with seven-year-old Naim and his mother.

A CT was due there and we wanted to avoid being late because of the rush-hour traffic. Finally, we had to wait a long time for the CT to take place. It wasn’t easy for Naim, who had to fast for getting a clear image on the CT scan. As a reward for his discipline, we promised Naim a coke after the CT and while we waited, we watched videos together on the cell phone as a distraction. The videos showed Naim with our community dog, Shevie. Naim’s mother told me that Naim has a big heart for animals. I experienced that too after we drove back to our community home in Ashdod after the CT, which thank God, went well.  Once we arrived at the community house, Naim kept knocking on the door to pet “Shevie.”

We’ll get the results of today’s CT soon. May God grant Naim health and healing. He will also have his catheterization on Monday.

Naim was scheduled for a CT scan at Sheba Hospital today so we departed very early at 6:30 AM to arrive to the hospital on time.

When we got to the hospital, we were told they could not do the CT scan today for Naim. The secretaries were really nice and scheduled a new appointment in two weeks.

For the rest of the day, Naim was really patient and waited until I was finished with the other appointment for one of our Kurdish kids.

It was really nice to spend some time with Naim and we are happy that we will see him again in two weeks. We pray for Naim’s health and joy.

Today Lilly and I picked up cute Naim and his lovely mother at the Erez Crossing point. We drove together to Sheba Medical Center for his echo appointment. They measured his oxygen level, made an ECG and finally did the echo.

The doctor said that his heart looks good and the results of his ECG and his oxygen level were also good. But we had to have a blood test for him to check on general things. So we went to that department. When we entered the room, Naim’s mother told me that he is very much afraid of blood tests and you could really see it in his face.

We had to hold him, because he was screaming and moving a lot every time he saw the needle. But at the end, he was so brave and we had no problem with his blood flowing, so we had the needed blood for the test pretty quickly.

From the first moment I saw Naim, he was smiling, happy and really open. You could see it also nearly the whole time in the hospital. When you didn’t look for one second after him, he disappeared. He had a lot of fun walking around and exploring the hospital. It was also really nice to see how he liked it to play in the playground area.

When we walked to the blood test, we passed an aquarium and he loved to watch the fish in there and wanted to see them again directly after the test was done.

His mother spoke English, which was really nice and made the day in the hospital so much easier. She cares deeply about her son and was always beside him.I enjoyed the time very much with them and after we dropped them off at the Gaza border, Naim said goodbye to us as he greeted us in the morning, with smiles and joy. So until he is coming back, I wish them all the best and that God blesses this family. Naim has to return in six months for his next heart check-up and for a surgery of his omphalocele at his stomach. Thanks for your prayers over them.