Thoughts From Sunday

Sunday Morning Breakfast

Kyle has lost 40 lbs since the accident.  He has been "drinking"  his food through a tube for 6 weeks now.   While Kyle has been taken off the trach, he is being carefully monitored on what he eats while the tube feeding continues.

He has just graduated to level three eating, which means he goes from ground meats and soft sides, to chopped meats and sandwiches.  I'm not sure Kyle really cares, but Alex and I are undoubtedly excited! This morning's breakfast is "real" ham and eggs, and tomorrow's will be Kyle's favorite, sausage, biscuits and gravy.  Looking forward soon to some Chipotle, with Herbie and Lucas!

A Painted Picture

We are enjoying some fresh air in the garden this morning.  Sunday and the garden are synonymous to me.   The boys are enjoying some serenity, a simple game of catch, and the tranquility of the Koi pond.

Patients, and families, and friends, are coming and going. We have met some of them and we have heard their stories.  There is quite a mix of strokes victims and accident victims, of brain injuries and spinal cord injuries.

Everywhere you look there are wheelchairs. There is the husband sitting silently, holding and stroking his wife's hand, and the husband showing his wife each flower they pass. There is the teen who is hanging with his friends now instead of his mom.  And the sole boy walking, still with his "belt", who we know must be going home soon.

 I remember the first day we walked into the Shepard building.  I became overwhelmed with emotions.  It was so difficult for me to pass by all these victims of accidents and keep my eyes from tearing up.  Back then, they were "victims" to me.  Now, they are human beings with a story.

Their Stories

At first all you see are wheelchairs and helmets, trachs and silent faces, broken bones and scars. There is the young man whose ex-girl friend took a bat to his head, and then left town.  Or the young man whose  head slammed into a chipping machine, when a rope caught behind his neck and forcefully pulled him into the machine.  There is also the teen and the young adult both here from auto accidents similar to Kyle's; both thrown from their car or truck, both no seat belt, both going too fast.

And then there is our friend Tucker, who we can happily say has gone home.  We met Tucker and his wonderful family and friends in Fairfax ICU.  Tucker fell backwards on cement when the scaffolding he was on broke.  Somehow, it was just meant to be that we met and our families connected.  We followed them here to Shepard and we cheered each other on in our recoveries.  I look forward to the day when Kyle is back home, and we can once again share some time with this caring family.  Much luck to Tucker!

A Little Humor

Ending on a light note, there have been quite some funny things Kyle has said lately.  Keep in mind, it is "funny" not because Kyle is trying to be funny, but because his brain, in the process of healing, has him still a little confused.

This from Diana, when showing him the date on paper:

"Kyle, what's the date?"
"Zero, seven, backslash, nineteen"

Gotta throw in that backslash 

This from Emma when asking orientation questions:

"What is your name?"
"Kyle Pinelli"
"What is your age?"
"16"
"Where are you now?"
"Shepard Center"
"And where are you from?"
"My mom"

And this from Alex, after giving him a verbal auto technology quiz with A,B,C,D answer choices:

Alex:  "Kyle, what would you like to do now?  Go to sleep, watch TV, or listen to music?
Kyle:  "A and C"

‘It is not the strength of the body, but the strength of the spirit.’ – J.R.R. Tolkien