“I Get By with a Little Help from My Friends”
What a wonderful day! This morning, I, along with Aaron’s Aunt Den, Aaron’s cousin Bill and his girlfriend Danielle, got to Magee at approximately 9:30. When we arrived, Aaron was still in bed, but was wide awake and off the vent and on the trach collar (and had been for about an hour and a half). He had just eaten his breakfast. Aaron’s physical therapist and I planned on her coming to Aaron’s room at 10:00 AM so she could give me another training session on preparing Aaron for his day. That went very well and Aaron handled it beautifully. I am not as quick as those who normally do this for him, so he had to endure lying flat on his back a little longer than normal and also on his side, which he doesn’t tolerate very well. But he and I are still speaking, so I consider it to be a success!
Aaron played Nintendo Wii today, which was very interesting. The therapist held the remote on his head and he moved his head to point it in the right direction. She would push the buttons on the remote to get it to shoot or do whatever she needed it to do. It was great exercise for his neck muscles, but really wore him out. But he did enjoy himself!
Aaron was also graced with the presence of his good friend, Brian Sullivan, today. Aaron hadn’t seen Brian for a couple of weeks, but it was quite a bit longer than that since he’d seen Bill and Danielle. He was THRILLED to have his friends with him today. Aunt Den and I sort of removed ourselves as much as possible so the young ‘unz could enjoy each other and catch up. They took turns going to therapy with him. At one point, the girls left the room because the guys fell asleep; Brian in Aaron’s bed, Aaron in his wheelchair, and Bill in a regular chair. Brian made out on that deal. (Sorry, Brian. No picture of you in Ern’s bed, I only post those at his request and he didn’t ask!)
After the guys woke up, Aaron was rejuvenated. He was more alert and happier than I had seen him in a long time! I think it was a combination of the sleep and then waking up and seeing some of his favorite people right there with him. It was not only good for his soul, it was good for everybody’s soul who observed it. If you ever doubted the importance of friendship in your life, you never had the opportunity to see what I saw today.
“There is magic in the memory of schoolboy friendships; it softens the heart, and even affects the nervous system of those who have no heart.”
– Benjamin Disraeli
Please pray for Aaron’s recovery and thank God for his friends and yours!