(Updated September 10, 2023) Beloved friends and family – our community of Seeds, I hope this note finds you ohhhh sooooo well.

I want to take a moment to communicate with you what’s going on with my partner in the work of Seeds of Exchange (and in LIFE!): My husband, Brandon, underwent open heart surgery on Tuesday, July 18. He needed to have a section of his blocked aortic valve removed and replaced with a mechanical valve. (Yup – he’s even MORE of a superhero than ever before, right?) 

This life-saving procedure is no joke. It’s a biggie.
It’s a dual-biggie in terms of blessing to get his heart repaired and in terms of risk and recovery.

Because of the nature of our global community – with sisters and brothers we truly call our FAMILY – we want to do all that we can to keep you updated about how Brandon and our family are doing, so that you can companion us however you most desire … in prayer, meditation, sending blessings from across the miles as you go about your day-to-day.

We are in this – and all of life! – together.

Brandon plans to return to work October 1 … and between now and then, he’ll do all he can to fuel robust HEALTH and HEALING. (Yup, count on it … it’ll include some PoPs – Places of Pause! – and ample opportunities to forgo doing dishes, laundry, and chores!)

 

STORIES ROOTED IN FAITH

We’ve worked for 18 years to cultivate the global, interfaith, diverse community of Seeds of Exchange. We love this EXTRAordinary aspect of our global family.

And, we have a hunch that as we share our intimate and personal journey of Brandon’s heart surgery and road to recovery, we will likely talk about our faith and life’s journey from a Christian context. It’s because for us, Jesus is the way we personally connect with God – and is Who gives us hope and Whom we trust to walk with and love us each and every day. In sharing our raw and real story, we know there will be times we cannot but share about our faith roots, which is what makes us unshakable and assured, rooted and rock solid – and where we go when we quake with fear or anxiety.

If you come from a different faith tradition – we hope and trust you know this! – please share your Scriptures, prayers, stories, and self with us. This is one of our favorite elements of our beautyFULL Seeds family.

 

TEXT & VIDEO PLAY-BY-PLAY UPDATES

Thanks, in advance, for bearing with our mixed video and photo / social media channel format / informal and intimate storytelling. Keepin’ it real … and standingTALL, together!

 

July 15, 2023

Pre-surgery message from “the man” himself.

 

July 18 – 5 a.m.

Just got to the hospital. Surgery is now scheduled for 7 am.

 

July 18 – 7:45 a.m.

They just took him into the operating room. All is well. (He is sassy as ever and VERY much at peace and not worried at all.) Keep the prayers comin’ for Brandon Davison-Tracy!

 

July 18 – 8:45 a.m.

Just heard from a nurse in the Operating Room that all is going well. I decided to step out of the surgery waiting room for a walk to a nearby park. Thought I’d bring ya with me on this PoP (Place of Pause) as I pray, breathe, listen to the birds, bask in beauty of the wetlands. Ahh.

 

July 18 – noon

OMG!! BEST. NEWS. EVER!!! He’s DONE!!

The surgery went well, per the surgeon who just came with the update!!
He has a NEW mechanical (*superhero* ) heart that is ROCKING!!

NOW: He wraps up in the operating room for a few minutes and is transferred up to the ICU (Intensive Care Unit), for more care and support.

Keep prayin’ – sending your love and goodness his way – and we’ll keep ya updated, with a Brandon Davison-Tracy-approved photo asap.

 

 

 

July 19 – 8 a.m.

It was a very rough night, pain-wise. And still suffering a lot this mornin’. Thank u for keeping Brandon in your prayers.

The nurses and docs in the ICU have been sooooo AHmazing. They softened some rules and regulations and allowed me to stay overnight, which was a mighty blessing!

Our goal today: pain management (and food). He’ll likely remain in the ICU for another day.

The docs are VERY pleased with his recovery, how his heart is working, and – aside from the pain – how his body is doing, within just 24 hours of open heart surgery.

I’m good – tired, sure … and it’s tough to see B in such pain – but I’m so glad they allowed me to stay and BE with B.

 

July 20 – 8 a.m.

OH, whatta beautyFULL morning with GOOD NEWS to report! HOORRAAYYY. Happy dance. THANK GOD. Bran is doing SO MUCH better today.

He slept well, pain is WAY DOWN (as it was ALL NIGHT!), and he woke up with his voice back! (It’s been down to a whisper since he came out of surgery.) – Buckle up, buttercups, the nurses and doc’s will be in for a TREAT with Bran’s VOICE in the hospital-room!! –

Yesterday afternoon rough and hard for Bran’s body – open heart surgery is no joke, even for this mechanical-valve-superhero of a man, Bran. Around 4 pm, his heart slowed its beating to a dangerous and scary level – but, within seconds, we had a team of ICU experts who worked their magic and keep him breathing and heart beating. (Whew!!)

To be sure, yesterday gave us lots of opportunities for those prayer-PoPs, to breathe deeply and fully, to trust the One who is always with us, and to hunker down, together. (ThankFULLY, the team allowed me to stay in the ICU again last night. =Sleepover, again, with my love!)

TODAY: Join us as we pray and hope for … continued low pain levels, strength to walk a bit in the halls, increase in appetite (he’s about to drink his first coffee post-surgery: a de-caffe coconut cappuccino!), heart recovery and health, lung expansion … AND perseverance* and courage if it gets hard.

*Bran’s inspiration for this week (which Soph creatively crafted into a blanket – which he’s wrapped up in right now!) came from the Bible, from a letter written by James, the little brother of Jesus:

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” -James 1:2-3

(DANG, he is one persevering superhero, NO?)

We are whooshing gratitude your way for your care and companionship, as we’ve never been alone in facing this trial … we are blessed and in awe by the support we’ve received. AND, we are also sending a blessing for YOU to be enCOURAGED to persevere if life is hard and if you, too, face trials this day. We love you and are in this, TOGETHER.

 

July 20 – 10 a.m.

Morning prayer-coffee-park PoP just outside of the hospital. Ahhh. So good.

The song I was listening to on repeat for my prayer-coffee-park PoP just outside of the hospital is from an album called “Love Secrets”.

Y’all … LOOK AT THE ALBUM COVER!!!! (I’ve been listening to this song for weeks and didn’t notice that the album cover is a VERY DETAIlED HEART until today.)

Link to listen on your fave platform.

Whatta gift to have THIS moment to FILL UP for the day ahead, back in the ICU with my man.

The song sings and rings of good-for-my-soul poetry. If you’re like me, it may take you many-a-listen to “take it in”. I hear it as part-lullaby, part-prayerFULL invitation for my life’s PURPOSE and FUEL and JOY. Ahh.

Lyrics:
Deep in the caverns of Your heart
Stood Your beloved, Your daystar
The fairest among ten thousand wines
You formed the seasons and fixed the time
You gave me smiles in the morning light
Creation flowed from pure love
You were crafting, I was breathing
You were laughing, I was reaching out for You
I was made for Heaven
I was made for Jesus
I was made to walk in the cool of the day with You
With You
Cursed in the garden of paradise
You knew the pain from a lover’s eyes
To get us back, You gave it all
Filled in the likeness of flesh on earth
You bore the cross that we deserved
You’ve gotten down on one knee
Spirit’s breathing, now I’m living
We’ve been married, now I’m seeing
What I was made for
The whole point of my existence
Is to know Your love
The whole point of my existence
Is to know You Lord
I was made for heaven
I was made for Jesus
I was made to walk in the cool of day with you
July 21 – 1 p.m.

Not such a beautyFULL update to report today. (Nothing EMERGENT to report – but a bugger of a recovery night/day.)

It was a doozy of a night last night for my man. Since about midnight last night, Bran had difficulty breathing (again, not in a dangerous way … as his oxygen levels were good – but in a profoundly uncomfortable way – OOF!).

It was a dark night with little sleep. He was – and is – discouraged and disheartened. He gave me permission to share this deep dip in his spirits. Send your love, prayers, blessings his way – he needs it today. I know he’s gonna be ok … but it is a very, very tough day on his road to recovery.

Here’s a few specifics for how we’d love for you to companion in prayer and good thoughts today:
… deep, full, restorative pathways for his BREATHING – for the wheezing, breathlessness to end
… for his SPIRIT and HEART to be enCOURAGED, lightened, brightened – for the spirit of heaviness and despair dissipate
… for DISCERNMENT about how best to support Bran AND our girl, Soph in their EPIC life stressors and opportunities. Soph has orientation @ Cal Poly beginning day after tomorrow until Wednesday, and we had hoped Bran would be home and recovering, feeling good-ish, such that I could go with Soph w/out it being a major stressor for him or his momma (his caretaker in my absence). It’s much harder to think about leaving and coordinate some logistics for his care w/ him feeling as cruddy as he feels now and likely not being discharged from the hospital as soon as we hoped. But, we TRUST that we will know the best path to take – and that each one of us will be companioned and loved by Jesus – and y’all! – as we go, especially in the no-good-very-bad / overwhelming / “too much” days.

 

July 22 – Day 4 – 5 p.m.

Here is a VIDEO update from the man, Brandon, himself!! But in brief TODAY – he’s doing SOOOOOO GOOOOOOOD!!! (Hoooorraaayyyy and hallelujah!)

His breathing is rocking! He slept GREAT! This morning, he devoured breakfast (blueberry pancake AND an omelette) and had Subway for lunch! His spirits are back to the sassy, energetic, optimistic Bran that we’re used to.
He’ll be heading home TOMORROW. (Soph and I are heading to Cal Poly for her orientation.)

THANK YOU for your messages, prayers, blessings, enCOURAGEment. More later!!

 

July 23 – noon

My goodness! MUCH MOVEMENT & GOODness to report!

AT THIS MOMENT, 2 things are goin’ on simultaneously – and quite miraculously! – in this never-boring adventure of life and Bran’s post-surgery journey:
…. Momma Sue and Bran are in the hospital, waiting for the discharge process to be complete – they hope to head home in the next hour or so (yayyyy!), and
… Soph and I are at the airport, preparing to board and fly to San Luis Obisbo for her Cal Poly orientation. (Yessss – thanks to the Davison family village doin’ what they do to care for each other, we miraculously and creatively found a way to make this work!)

LAST NIGHT was Bran and my last night of hospital sleepovers – how thankFULL I am that the hospital allowed me to stay with him every night of his stay. He’s feeling MUCH better, but dang! – his body is still workin’ through A LOT, and it’s been five nights of little to no sleep, so he’s exhausted and feeling the intensity of open heart surgery recovery … and HAPPY and HOPEful to be able to rest at home.

Below is a video tour he gave late last night, during our last walk ‘round the halls of our heart-ward of the hospital. (Yup – as cruddy as he feels, he IS STILL the straw that stirs the drink and makes us laugh ALL the TIME!)

THANK YOU – we’ve been SO MOVED and enCOURAGED by the messages, offers for support, and prayer. Our cups run over with such GRATITUDE for and LOVE of you!

 

July 26 – 7 p.m.

Soph and I just landed in Denver! We had an amazing, graced, fill~up~our~cups time together at her Cal Poly freshman year college orientation!

(Whatta gift: I ended up having an unexpected *day* {!!} to bask in the beauty of the central coast of California – paddle-boarded and boogie-boarded in ONE day! – to sleep, and simply BE / PoP! Ahhh!) Soph did her thing: Made friends and navigated challenging situations with tenacity … diving in, wholeheartedly, to her next chapter of life!

Brandon is recovering in his typical rockstar fashion, thanks to the incredible support of his remarkable momma, bro’, sis’-in-law, and nephews! He has handled the challenging post-surgery issues (right now, struggling with being able to breathe well – which makes sleep tough!) with humor, patience, and grace. While we were gone, Micah was at a high school football camp for three days, embracing his next chapter with gusto, too!

We are looking *very* forward to being under one roof tonight as “The DT’s” for the first time since last Monday, July 17!

Here are a few photo highlights from California.

PS – I’ll keep you updated on my man in the days to come. Thank you again for all of your prayerful, jaw-dropping companionship!

 

July 29 – 5 p.m.

A vid from THE MAN himself (‘cuz that always makes for some FUN, aye?):

 

Here are 2 pics from yesterday – when Micah was giving Bran a foot-rub and helping him w/ his “incentive spirometry” (learning how to breathe fully and deeply).

 

August 2 – 5 p.m.

Brandon launched a NEW endeavor AND has a brand new social media presence – on TikTok – to chronicle his road to recovery. Soph helped him craft this video tonight – and for those on TikTok, you can follow him @brandondavisontracy – woot woooot!

If you’re not familiar with the Red Rocks Amphitheater, where we filmed this video, it’s an iconic concert venue in Colorado. In typical B-dawg fashion, he summited the top step as a band was warming up and playing an EPIC, triumphant song (we told him it was JUST FOR HIM!).

A few headlines from the week thus far:
… recovery has been harder and slower than he expected, which has, at times, been discouraging, disheartening, and frustrating. BUT, one of our beloved cardiac care peeps – ANNA – told us at our appointment yesterday that research has shown that the trauma to the body and mind of heart surgery is akin to being shot in the chest. (THAT gave us some perspective, and I think, grace to Bran’s heart as he navigates the ups and downs of recovery.)
… his breathing continues to be labored and energy extremely low – he naps a lot (which is GOOD medicine, I say!).
… in the midst of the hard, he’s still sassy, hilarious, and always up to something surprising.
… the support we’ve received has been deeply enCOURAGING and has buoyed our spirits – thank YOU!

 

August 7, 2023

A pic of he and our pups a the top last week

Hey y’all! Hope you’re doing SoooOOOOO GOOOD. Bran asked me today to update you on his progress.

Despite his “superhero” appearance at Red Rocks last Wednesday, his health has taken a bit of a back step since then.

The good news is his pain is under great control; however, his shortness of breath, fatigue, inability to sleep well at night (due to breathing struggles) are so extreme now that his Cardiac Care Team is worried he has fluid building up around his heart. (He can barely take 10 steps without pausing to rest!)

We were at the doctor’s office this afternoon and tests are being ordered quickly and we should have a diagnosis and treatment plan soon.

Blessings to all of you and we will keep you posted!

 

August 11, 2023 – 9 a.m.

An update from the man, Bran, himself this Friday for ya:

I have had a small set-back but nothing that requires surgery or anything inpatient. The right side of my heart is pretty severely dilated which is affecting blood flow back to my heart. In addition, the ‘sac’ around my heart also has some fluid in it which is not supposed to be there. That explains why I am so tired and short of breath. Good news is it should get better with some new medications and time. It’s really just a complication from disrupting my heart with an open heart procedure. It’s understandable, really, as hearts don’t like to be pushed around.

It’s super slow going here. His spirits up some moments and down the next. (Totally understandable, right?!) One of the hardest things has been sleep – he’s exhausted, but often unable to sleep deeply and restoratively. Changing positions can lead to prolonged spasm cough and pain which leads to wakeful and long nights. Keep those prayers and good vibes whooshing his way – he needs ‘em. 🙏🏻

Closing word – and emojis! – from Bran:

Taking it day to day. 💪🏼👍🏼🙏🏼❤️

PS / We shot his “Wednesdays on the Rocks” video on Wednesday. It’s currently in production with his personal media expert: Soph. Will send it your way when it’s done. :)

August 11, 2023 – 9 p.m.

Here’s Week 2 – Wednesdays at the Rocks!

 

Sept 1, 2023

You can check out the rest of his “Wednesdays at the Rocks!” videos on this YouTube playlist. He plans to continue these for 52 weeks! 💥

HOW ARE WE DOING & WHAT DO WE NEED?

We are GOOD – truly, we are. We are being strengthened and enCOURAGED each day by our “3 F’s”: Faith, Family, and Friendship – and our deepening love for one another. Even though we have little idea of just what the future holds, we do know we are not going it alone – never have been, never will be! “We don’t know what to do, but our eyes are on You” is one of my favorite and often-recited prayer-declarations from the Bible. It’s truer than ever today.

Are there moments we’re overwhelmed or afraid? Heck, yeah! But, when that happens, we take a PoP – talk to Jesus, breathe, relax, surrender, talk with each other, y’all … and keep on goin’ – most moments, with renewed hope and trust that all is well, and all will be well.

 

NUGGETS OF INSPIRATION ABOUT PRAYER

“Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at his disposition, and listening to his voice in the depth of our hearts.” -Mother Teresa

“Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” -Corrie ten Boom

“Let everyone try and find that as a result of daily prayer he adds something new to his life, something with which nothing can be compared.” -Mahatma Gandhi

“In my deepest, darkest moments, what really got me through was a prayer. Sometimes my prayer was ‘Help me.’ Sometimes a prayer was ‘Thank you.’ What I’ve discovered is that intimate connection and communication with my creator will always get me through because I know my support, my help, is just a prayer away.” -Iyanla Vanzant

“Most mornings I’m up to see the sun, and that rising of the light moves me very much, and I’m used to thinking and feeling in words, so it sort of just happens. I think one thing is that prayer has become more useful, interesting, fruitful, and … almost involuntary in my life. And when I talk about prayer, I mean really … what Rumi says in that wonderful line, ‘there are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.’” -Mary Oliver

“We should seek not so much to pray but to become prayer.” -St. Francis of Assisi

“Never underestimate the power of prayer! Constant prayer, with full conviction, without loss of hope, really does create miracles.” -Ritu Ghatourey

“There are times in life when the soul finds comfort only in profound prayer. Would that souls knew how to persevere in prayer at such times. This is very important.” -Faustina Kowalska

“When you recognize the festive and the still moments as moments of prayer, then you gradually realize that to pray is to live.” -Henri Nouwen

“I would advise those who practice prayer, especially at first, to cultivate the friendship and company of others who are working in the same way. This is a most important things, because we can help one another by our prayers, and all the more so because it may bring us even greater benefits.” -Teresa of Avila

“Prayer is where the action is.” -John Wesley

 

THREE SONGS WE’VE HAD ON REPEAT AS OF LATE

The first one is a LONG one – 13+ minutes! – and near the end, it has one of Brandon’s favorite Scripture-promises: “They that wait [hope, trust] on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” -Isaiah 40:31

 

 

 

Speaking of music, here’s a playlist I created and LOVE on Spotify: Momma DT. We’ll be jammin’ and resting to it in the hospital, count on it! (LOL, along with some of Brandon’s other faves: 80’s and R&B!)

 

OK, my friend – will leave it here for now … will post updates next week as I’m able.

Thank you, with all my heart, for your companionship.

 

You are loved.
We belong to each other.
Let’s standTALL together and light up the world!

xo, -Sarah Davison-Tracy, Seeds of Exchange