An update from Jamie Crist.... thank you!
Jason,
I just wanted to let you know how happy I am continually seeing dads progress at hand. I took Matt & Emily down to see Skip yesterday afternoon and was surprised to see him feeding himself when we arrived. He was so happy to see the kids that he stopped what he was doing and insisted that the kids give him a big hug before he began eating again. I gave him a hug and a high five and told him that I was impressed that he was sitting up eating solid foods and using his right arm to feed himself.
I asked how the food was. He gave me a sour look, stuck his hand out and gave us the “so-so” sign. I could tell he tell he didn’t like it, but who in their right mind enjoys the fine dining of hospital cuisine! I reassured him he’d be eating Juans’ enchiladas and fresh salsa in no time. He gave me the “thumbs up” and smiled.
We sat and talked with him while he finished his dinner. Emily showed Skip her coloring journal which was full of beautiful hand colored pictures of the family, flowers, and imaginative scenes she draws about. (Emily’s the artist in the family) I think she has a little of Grammys’ artisitic genes in her. As each page was turned, Skip reacted with great enthusiasm. He told Emily, “Emily, that’s so beautiful”, Emily had a grin from ear to ear. Skip also said “Look at those colors”. Emily was elated. I am so grateful to hear Skip speak in full sentences. Most importantly, we can understand most of what he is saying. We are still asking simple questions that require the “yes” and “no” answers, but Skip makes the effort to answer with an explanation or statement that we can understand.
After our fine art exhibit, Matt told No-No about his weekend of baseball, and what he was studying in school. As skip was listening, he smiled and gave Matt the thumbs up. Then he said to both Matt & Emily, “I love both of you very much”. Matt & Emily gave him big hugs & told him they loved him. My heart swelled up with emotions at that moment. Here’s a man who has touched so many people and enjoys making people laugh and feel comforted around him. I can see that Dad is growing spiritually and emotionally with hope and faith. His determination to improve his physical and mental condition has brought him to a level where the therapists have noticed and have commented on how much skip has improved each day. That’s my Dad, always accelerating to mach 1.
We took Dad out to the courtyard in his wheelchair, he used his left leg to motorize and maneuver his wheelchair, negotiating every corner like he’d done it 100 times. He would let me push him, but still used his leg for propulsion. We sat outside for a few minutes and chatted about the lack of flowers in the garden. We mentioned playing dominos, Skip perked up & wanted to play tiles, so we went back to the room ant played a few games. Matt & Emily helped us mix the tiles and draw the correct amount of tiles, Skip did the rest. I thought Id be easy on him, boy was that a mistake. The first round, Skip scored 10 points to my 2 and sent me to the bone yard. The next round we both struggled to score points, but he sent me into the bone yard twice, reading my tiles and blocking playable opportunities. The third round I got a little tougher, we both scored big, and skip came out ahead gaining 2 more points. He hasn’t lost a beat on his domino game. I was so excited to see that Dads’ mind is still as sharp as when he was before the stroke. This thought process is as good as it was before, we just need to “rejuvenate” some of the other working parts.
We played another game, by that time it was time for us to leave & let Skip rest. Carolyn called and spoke with dad for a few minutes. They held a conversation like they had been talking on the phone for hours. It was nice to see close interaction from Dad. It sounded like Carolyn picked up every word Skip spoke on the phone. I was amazed. By far, this was the best visit with regards to Dads’ progress. All the therapists told me that Skip is excelling rapidly and shows enthusiasm in doing it. Dad has a sense of peace inside of him, like he knows that everything is going to be alright. Before, I sensed a little anxiousness in this presence, now he has the confidence of a pro stepping up the final 18th ready to putt for the win. He’s sure, confident and serene.
I just wanted to let you know how happy I am continually seeing dads progress at hand. I took Matt & Emily down to see Skip yesterday afternoon and was surprised to see him feeding himself when we arrived. He was so happy to see the kids that he stopped what he was doing and insisted that the kids give him a big hug before he began eating again. I gave him a hug and a high five and told him that I was impressed that he was sitting up eating solid foods and using his right arm to feed himself.
I asked how the food was. He gave me a sour look, stuck his hand out and gave us the “so-so” sign. I could tell he tell he didn’t like it, but who in their right mind enjoys the fine dining of hospital cuisine! I reassured him he’d be eating Juans’ enchiladas and fresh salsa in no time. He gave me the “thumbs up” and smiled.
We sat and talked with him while he finished his dinner. Emily showed Skip her coloring journal which was full of beautiful hand colored pictures of the family, flowers, and imaginative scenes she draws about. (Emily’s the artist in the family) I think she has a little of Grammys’ artisitic genes in her. As each page was turned, Skip reacted with great enthusiasm. He told Emily, “Emily, that’s so beautiful”, Emily had a grin from ear to ear. Skip also said “Look at those colors”. Emily was elated. I am so grateful to hear Skip speak in full sentences. Most importantly, we can understand most of what he is saying. We are still asking simple questions that require the “yes” and “no” answers, but Skip makes the effort to answer with an explanation or statement that we can understand.
After our fine art exhibit, Matt told No-No about his weekend of baseball, and what he was studying in school. As skip was listening, he smiled and gave Matt the thumbs up. Then he said to both Matt & Emily, “I love both of you very much”. Matt & Emily gave him big hugs & told him they loved him. My heart swelled up with emotions at that moment. Here’s a man who has touched so many people and enjoys making people laugh and feel comforted around him. I can see that Dad is growing spiritually and emotionally with hope and faith. His determination to improve his physical and mental condition has brought him to a level where the therapists have noticed and have commented on how much skip has improved each day. That’s my Dad, always accelerating to mach 1.
We took Dad out to the courtyard in his wheelchair, he used his left leg to motorize and maneuver his wheelchair, negotiating every corner like he’d done it 100 times. He would let me push him, but still used his leg for propulsion. We sat outside for a few minutes and chatted about the lack of flowers in the garden. We mentioned playing dominos, Skip perked up & wanted to play tiles, so we went back to the room ant played a few games. Matt & Emily helped us mix the tiles and draw the correct amount of tiles, Skip did the rest. I thought Id be easy on him, boy was that a mistake. The first round, Skip scored 10 points to my 2 and sent me to the bone yard. The next round we both struggled to score points, but he sent me into the bone yard twice, reading my tiles and blocking playable opportunities. The third round I got a little tougher, we both scored big, and skip came out ahead gaining 2 more points. He hasn’t lost a beat on his domino game. I was so excited to see that Dads’ mind is still as sharp as when he was before the stroke. This thought process is as good as it was before, we just need to “rejuvenate” some of the other working parts.
We played another game, by that time it was time for us to leave & let Skip rest. Carolyn called and spoke with dad for a few minutes. They held a conversation like they had been talking on the phone for hours. It was nice to see close interaction from Dad. It sounded like Carolyn picked up every word Skip spoke on the phone. I was amazed. By far, this was the best visit with regards to Dads’ progress. All the therapists told me that Skip is excelling rapidly and shows enthusiasm in doing it. Dad has a sense of peace inside of him, like he knows that everything is going to be alright. Before, I sensed a little anxiousness in this presence, now he has the confidence of a pro stepping up the final 18th ready to putt for the win. He’s sure, confident and serene.
posted by Jason Crist at 12:07 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home