Angola #5: A Rogue Wave

For centuries sailors have reported huge waves hitting their vessels without warning. These immense walls of water occur in perfect weather and reach heights of 100 feet. Both large ships and small boats have capsized and completely rolled over when the rogue wave hits.

A “rogue wave” hit my life out of the blue on December 8, 2003. My wife and I were attending the 50th birthday party of a friend from church. We were having a great time with no warning signs of what was about to happen.

Towards the end of the evening the guest of honor stood to thank everyone for attending the party. Suddenly I felt a weight on my shoulder. I grabbed my wife before she fell to the floor. I laid her down gently and asked, “Honey, what’s wrong?” She tried to reply but her words were garbled. I choose to believe she said, “I love you.” Then she slipped into a coma having suffered a catastrophic stroke.

Seventy-two hours later she wasn’t breathing on her own. The family made the difficult decision to remove life support. She died on our son’s 24th birthday.

There was one thing that helped me survive the dark days and months that followed. Although I didn’t understand it, God had called me to go to Angola, and my wife had commissioned me.

I left for Angola on June 22, 2004. It would’ve been our 30th wedding anniversary.