It goes to show that this little guy has a spirit that refuses to be squashed.

Guess he had to learn to be tough after being born severely disabled that left him incapacitated, unable to do even the simplest things.

I continue to lift little Caden in my prayers, each and every day.  I even find myself praying for the teens who did this to him.  The teenage boys are now in a maximum security prison, with hardened criminals, with at least 20 years of jail time, which probably means that they'll be in their 30's or 40's by the time they are released (no chance of parole for these kids).  I pray that God changes their minds and hearts and somehow make restitution with Caden and his family after what they've done to him/them.

I continue to go see Caden (as well as Julie, his mother) several times a week at the hospital where they are staying.  Some days are okay; others, not so good, as Caden sometimes has complications:  pneumonia.  High fevers.  Overwhelming infection.  More surgeries/debridements, only adding to the intense pain he must be enduring.  I just can't imagine the hell this child must be going through; it breaks my heart.

I still don't understand why these teenagers had to be so malicious towards a little boy who couldn't defend himself.  What did little Caden ever do to deserve being burned alive?  He couldn't help being born the way he was; he was just a little disabled boy trying to make his way in a cruel, unforgiving world not geared for people like himself!

Last week, Caden suffered a Code Blue.  Heart/breathing stopped, just like that.  I happened to be in the room, visiting him, when his monitors started shrieking:  scared the holy he** out of me.  One minute, I was there, by his bedside, holding his hand, praying and talking softly to him; next minute, I was being hustled out of the room, the monitors shrieking their tone into my ear.  I knew he was in trouble; I shot a few quick, desperate prayers to Heaven, asking God to keep him safe and to let him pull through his crisis.

I wonder how many more Code Blues he might have suffered, or if he's that much closer to checking out.  It seems that he's teetering on life's edge, and then, somehow, angels intervene, and Caden comes back, more determined than ever to survive.  It just goes to show that Caden has many people praying, pulling for him.  His story has touched people, not only here in our community, but across the nation.

I certainly know that Caden's Fight For Life isn't over, not by a long shot.  This is definitely proving to be the case these past several weeks since he got injured.  I and dozens of other people have started a "Caden Prayer Chain":  every day, we call each other up, designate special prayer time for an hour, to lift up Caden in prayer, and to ask for God's healing touch on this special little boy. 

We also lift up his family, and to ask God to get them through this horrible time in their lives, and to give them the peace/serenity they so desperately need.

God must be listening to our prayers because Caden is still here!  :)

*To be continued.*