Connecting The Dots

Yesterday, 18 September 2012,  was the two month anniversary of Adam’s first surgery… the Grid Implant, a week later he had his second surgery where the doctors removed and disconnected parts of his brain.

It’s been two months and NO SEIZURES…. What a wonderful blessing.

Post second surgery Adam could not speak, could not read,  suffered from some stroke like symptoms to his right side, could not eat and for the most part was in pretty bad shape.  He had wonderful nurses to help  and encourage him through the day;  He had a family and extended support group pulling and praying for him daily, hourly and at times on the minute.

Yesterday before leaving on my trip this fantastic young man came up to me and gave me a hug.. a real hug, one full of real love, one that comes from a deep well of pure water… a purity of unconditional love that many strive for all their life… before leaving we had a small conversation and then I was on my way… What a road to progress he has traveled in such a short time!!!!

I need to wind the clock back a little to paint the portrait of events on the canvas of our lives.  Adam left the hospital in a wheel chair…. today he walks.

Adam left the hospital with a very limited ability to speak… Today he can carry on a conversation.

Adam left the hospital not being able to recognize words or have the ability to read… today he is able to read several  sentences at a time.

When Adam left the hospital he could not sequence events, thoughts or words… today he is progressing with connecting thoughts, ideas and words in a logical pattern.

Just two weeks ago I asked Adam to do a series of small tasks, three to be exact… they were three items which are logically connected for most of us; in other words we would see them as first you do “A” then “B” and then “C”… Adam could not get past the instruction “A”  he would start out great and get to point “A” but would then become lost and confused on what was to be done next.  This has been frustrating for him and us.. time and time again he would find failure when trying to complete simple connect the dots instructions.

I was becoming concerned as it seemed that Adam had hit a wall in his progression and recovery… I asked myself are we going to have Adam living with us a lot longer than we think?  Is he ever going to be able to live on his own?  Will he be able to serve a mission, which is his greatest desire?  These questions, along with others kept haunting my thoughts when I pondered upon our son, his condition and his future… Oh how we want him to live a “normal” life.. to experience the wonders of life and relationships.

Adam’s ability to speak has been improving but slowly;  here again he seemed to hit a wall in his progression.  He can carry on a conversation, but will find difficulties in finding words or when trying to describe something he is talking about.  Adam’s nature is so good, he doesn’t get upset or frustrated, but simply say’s “Oh I just had it” or ” I had it but lost it”.. he always has a smile and is so good natured about awkward situations.

As a parent I have experienced such a blanket of blessings that covers my soul with warmth and comfort.  Adam has always been a loving kid, but since his surgery a purity of love that comes from a deep well has flowed from him to those around him.  He is so innocent, so vulnerable, so dependent, and so open.  I can not adequately express the feelings I have when he comes into our bedroom at the end of a long day and just wants to talk, to share emotions and feelings… he is always trying to comfort and find a peaceful place for others in turmoil.  He offers hugs of love that carry a sincerity and genuineness that are rare:  These moments have become a pearl of great price… a treasure of great personal worth… priceless.

Cindy and I had to withdraw Adam from High School… his senior year… and enroll him in a program called “Hospital Homebound.”  It is a program that is offered through the school district for those kids who are unable to attend normal school due to medical reasons.

Adam meets with his teachers and other classmates over the internet and telephone.  A conference call is conducted while each of the students logs onto the teachers website for instructions and assignments.

As I had mentioned Adam has not been able to read… so we have had to read him his assignments and work side-by-side with him to accomplish his school work.  One of the difficulties has been his inability to sequence events and thoughts… connecting the dots… Especially in his literature class where they are studying the battles of Beowulf.

Adam is responsible for reading each of the battles, writing an outline then writing a paragraph which contains each of the proper subjects and parts of a paragraph.

The first battle of Beowulf dealt with his fight against Grendel.  We had to read him the battle and work with him line by line in accomplishing the writing assignment.  It became disheartening that Adam could not put simple thoughts or events together.. he could not sequence the ideas or events.

In between this he had his other assignments to accomplish and complete, then came the second battle of Beowulf where Beowulf went to fight the  mother of Grendel.  Cindy read Adam the story, I read Adam the story then we worked on the outline and got it sent in.  The next night I read Adam the story again and Cindy sat down with him to begin working on the paragraph.  They got the first line or two completed when Cindy had to get a few other items done around the house, so I stepped in to help.  As I began to talk with Adam about the story and the sequence of events… he said… “I know.”  I tried again to offer a few thoughts on the direction of the paragraph with a few quotes from the story, but again he said…” I know”… “I got it.”  After several attempts and seeing him begin to get a few thoughts together… I stepped back and watched from the kitchen as he worked at the computer.  He would look at the book and type a few lines… back to the book then the computer… book, computer,… book computer… then he said he was done… WOW!!!  Cindy and I were amazed, but what did he write.. would it make any sense?

As we read the full page plus part of a second page of writing we were taken aback… Adam had begin to connect the dots… he had remembered the story, sequenced it in his mind and put it into writing… and it sounded good!  He did it on his own. The teacher gave him a 94% on the essay… He got an “A”

I cannot express the relief that this bridge has now been built and crossed in his brain.. a brain making new pathways, finding new ways to deal with the world around…. what a blessing and what excitement for us… as the bridge becomes bigger and stronger his abilities will in increase proportionally.

When we thought the dots could not be connected.. Adam began to connect them… always amazing us… always seeing the blessing from heaven.

Another part of Adam’s recovery is his physical… he needs physical exercise, he still is very weak with his right hand.  His uncle Miles sent him an XBox 360 with Kinect.  Adam is now working out by crushing buildings as the Rancor character in a Star Wars kinect video game…. I have included a little video of him in action.