In case you missed it, last week we only published a News From the Home Office column because our daughter and her boyfriend were in a head-on collision. You can read the story HERE.

I am once again not publishing their names for their own privacy.

A’s boyfriend, M, has more extensive injuries, with the broken foot, ankle, and ribs. He is exercising his lungs to prevent pneumonia (he has a funny breathing gizmo) and we’re keeping his foot elevated and frequently iced because of the swelling. It is extremely black and blue. He is understandably depressed because he’s very active, and isn’t accustomed to sitting still for long periods of time. We’re also not sure if he’ll be able to start the Chef job he was guaranteed in April because it requires being on his feet all day. Despite the pain, he is only taking Motrin. He didn’t like the way the pain pills made him feel.

A was at the orthopedist again this morning because her elbow has been bothering her since the accident. It appears the splint was digging into her elbow. They removed the splint and she has a big bruise there but they x-rayed it again and it’s not broken. The wrist is “crushed.” The bones between the hand and arm were all smashed together and there are too many pieces for them to try fixing it with pins. They are not going to do surgery for now. The bad news is there has been “no change” in the 8 days since the accident so they had to put on a full-arm cast instead of a half-cast (which would have just covered from above her fingers to her elbow). This provides far more stability and will, hopefully, get those bones growing back together again. Though there are “many small pieces,” they are all essentially in the right place so we’re praying they start healing together the right way.

Her biggest concern during the past week is the fact that she may not be able to graduate from college in three months like she’d planned. She thought she might be able to demonstrate the skills required in her culinary classes to graduate if she could bend her elbow, since her fingers are free (though still too painful to move). With a full cast, she can’t bend her elbow at all. If you think about decorating a cake, or crimping or braiding pastry dough, or even chopping onions, you can see how she may be faced with a significant challenge. She has worked so hard to double major and graduate early (and she’s been on the Dean’s List since she started college) and she is so very frightened that she may need to obtain a medical withdrawal and then go back to school for another semester in the Spring, thus delaying starting her career by another year.

M’s roommate came to town to stay with us for a couple of weeks (or longer) and he has been awesome! He’s a chef, too, so he’s cooking, and cleaning, and getting fresh ice packs, and dispensing Motrin, and taking the dog, Jax, out to wee wee, and so much more!! He’s from Georgia and last night we had deep fried Southern Pork Chops, Green Bean Casserole, and Garlic and White Pepper Mashed Potatoes. YUM!!! The other kids pulled out some games (board and video) to keep A and M occupied. Richard ordered voice recognition software so A can at least try to keep up with her business classes. For now, M is doing the typing for her since he has two good arms.

When either one of them starts to get quiet or depressed, we remind them that they are ALIVE and that all things work together for good. We may never know why this horrible accident happened, but we know that it happened for some reason. 🙂

This week’s Masonism:

Mason (age 4) was listening to a cartoon on the iPad WAY too loud. I said, “Mason, please turn it down. That’s driving me nuts.”

He replied, “Oh, Mom. It’s not REALLY driving you NUTS, is it?

Hugs to all!

Angela

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HOW TO REMEMBER, WRITE AND PUBLISH YOUR LIFE STORY! by Angela Hoy
Using Angela’s MEMORY TRIGGERS, recall memories that have been dormant for years, and record those memories in chronological order in your memory notebook. Using the memory notebook as your outline, write your autobiography! **Also works for biographies and memoirs.**