I remember one year ago today like it was yesterday. I was
working from home in Virginia, sitting at my desk when my mom called, “your daddy just had
a major stroke”. My first thought was wishing I'd called him the day
before. He’d been in the hospital that week while medical staff ran tests for
what we now know were minor strokes. I knew he wouldn’t want people to make a
big deal out of his circumstance so I’d instead gotten updates from the family.
I said as much to my mom when I thought out loud about whether I should fly
home. “Crystal, this is a big deal.”
The next few days we spent in the hospital, preparing to
make impossible decisions in the event Daddy’s brain swelled too much, analyzing
pictures of his damaged brain, watching him go without food and water for
several days and coming to the realization that things would forever be
different.
In that first week we also celebrated major victories: knowing
Daddy would survive after the swelling peaked and started to subside, seeing
him up and “walking”, finally passing a swallow test so he could eat and drink,
getting “accepted” to a fantastic rehabilitation center to start his recovery.
One year ago today Daddy survived a major stroke. Every day
since then he’s been relearning. Today he’s functionally independent, walks (slowly and with a cane), and can get most of his thoughts across through speech
and hand gestures.
Today we celebrated not only his survival, but how far he’s
come. And how far he’ll go.
-#1
