Monday, June 29

I will remember you
Will you remember me?
Don't let your life pass you by
Weep not for the memories

I'm so tired but I can't sleep
Standin' on the edge of something much too deep
It's funny how we feel so much but we cannot say a word
Though we are screaming inside oh we can't be heard

I'm so afraid to love you, but more afraid to loose
Clinging to a past that doesn't let me choose
But once there was a darkness, deep and endless night
You gave me everything you had, oh you gave me light

That I will remember you
Will you remember me?
Don't let your life pass you by
Weep not for the memories



Guest Blogger Jim back on duty -

first order of business...Grandma May, I can't call you if your line is continually busy. Today, Riley, Miya and I arrived at the hospital during Dean's physical therapy session. We got to watch while Dean practiced getting up from bed and shifting to a sitting position with his legs out of bed. We left him while he was streching his torso and right arm (while using it for support). Achieving a more upright posture allowed Dean to take a fuller breath, using his diaphram and complete chest cavity, rather than just the stomach breathing that he preformed for the night nurse taking his vital signs.

So, after we returned from lunch, we found Dean waiting for us in his room, sitting in his wheelchair. I suggested a chess match and asked if he wanted to play Miya or Riley and of course Riley got the finger of fate pointed at him. When Dean plays chess against his son, everything is on the line, so there is no looking off out the window or even at the TV. His entire focus is on the game. He held that concentration for at least 15 minutes and the only thing that broke the spell was an irritation with his feeding tube. Eventually we called for some help, but the CNA insisted that he keep the tube in place. Finally, after checking twice with his nurse, she disconnected the tube. Immediately Dean gestured to leave but as we moved toward the door, he took a turn to the bathroom...he needed to use the facilities, that was the reason for his agitation with the feeding tube, it needed to be disconnected before he could go to the bathroom. A simple human need for which we had not yet developed a way to communicate between us. Ahh, the things we take for granted.

Well, later we went out the the interior courtyard of the rehab center and when we returned, Dean was tired enough that he wanted to get into his bed. I assisted him to a standing position but he was able to do the rest himself, adjusting his body so he could drop into bed and moving his body until he was in a normal position, centered, with his hips above the crease created when the bed is adjusted when the head is raised. The work and training is paying off in a very practical sense and again, I can't help but think that his self-confidence took another step forward.

Tomorrow we will most likely see the occupational therapist at work and report back.

Goodbye for now,

Jim