#289 - FB

This week we have been on vacation.  The house that we are staying at has a small pool.  It is not very deep and is surrounded by a concrete wall that one of my boys thought would be a great diving board. He was reminded very quickly by his grandmother with severe reinforcement by his father that that is not what the wall was to be used for.  "Why?" he asked (whined really).  His grandmother replied, "Because I know someone who jumped in shallow water like that and broke his neck and died."  Scary, isn't it.  But, you know what is just as scary?  Breaking your neck and not dying.  This brings me to post #289.

Another patient post.  This is a gentleman who broke his neck the year before I started to practice PT.  For those of you who are keeping track of time...that would be about 19 years ago.  He was on a ladder in his yard and was startled causing a fall to the ground and the end of life as he knew it.  Since then, it has been a series of struggles for he and his wife.  He was a rough and tough oilfield mover and shaker.  Now he needs someone to help him do the smallest of tasks.  He has learned how to drive again with a power wheelchair and a minivan modified for hand controls, but this does him no good when the battery to his chair dies and the spare is at home.  He ventures out on his own...sometimes to the mall and sometimes to WalMart.  They have lots of great handicapped parking spaces.  This does him no good when people leave their empty shopping carts in the lane that is supposed to be left open so that he can lower his van ramp.  He sometimes has to wait hours for them to come back to move their cars.

When he was first injured, he spent a lot of his own money travelling to different areas of the country that are known for their cutting edge work on spinal cord injuries.  This research involves stem cell experiments.  He volunteered for study after study and was accepted to some, but none produced any results that will be available to help him.  After so many years without hope for medical recovery, the days pass for him very slowly.  He has a farm in a nearby area that he and his wife spend their weekends, just to get away.  In his lifetime he has traveled the world and seen many, many things and now all he has is his memories.

Over the years, I have treated him frequently for various problems.  I am always willing to listen to him reminisce about the good old days.  I cannot imagine his life and I hope that I never have to.  Today, my prayers go out to #289 and the many people in the world who live with physical handicaps.  May the Lord give them to courage and strength to fight the battle that they face daily.