Friday, November 27

Today is going really well.  He's awake and more lucid than we've seen him so far.  We are getting better at reading his lips and we are also using an alphabet board to spell out words.  When we tried the board yesterday he would sort of space out before we could get a whole word out, so the fact that we are communicating sentences and ideas today is remarkable.  He remembered that I told him the other day I am borrowing his truck, he wants us to speak with our uncle about him becoming a Mason, and he wants to know how much I pay for my cell phone each month.  It's interesting to learn what his concerns are after the 12-day trip he's been on.  He is also asking about his condition and wanted to know details about the accident, his current state, and how much he will recover.  He's saving these questions for Dad and so far Dad has been honest and straightforward with him but has not used the words "paralyzed" or "quadriplegic".  The truth is that we don't know how much he will recover but we know that it will take a long time and that's what Dad has told him.  I think he grasps the severity of his injuries which is tough.  I expect that he will become very depressed and angry during his recovery and I am afraid of that.  I wish there was some way I could save him from that pain, but I also recognize that it will be part of his recovery and it is important that he work through it himself.