Hope Restored

Choose "Better"

My goal as a mother has been to raise honest, kind, hard working and generous young men. I feel that Tristan and Corbin have both become amazing humans and I'm fiercely proud of them both. Every one of you reading this knows that life can be cruel, and has a way of providing a "school of hard knocks" style education. The quote above has been one of my favorites since the first time I read it, and I've tried to instill this mindset in both of the boys. While it sounds cliché, there's no denying that we get to choose how we respond to the challenges in life. Becoming bitter over unfortunate events, painful experiences, or the slights of others does nothing positive for us. I'll be the first to admit it isn't always easy to take the high road and learn from the experience, but if it's the way we choose to face each challenge our lives will be better for it.

Tristan still relies on the walker or crutches to get around, but this week brought a bit of a "bounce" to his old-man-shuffle. Now that his flesh wounds have fully healed he was able to be discharged by the Home Health Nursing. The Speech Therapist re-tested Tristan on his cognitive functioning this week (he had scored below average on his executive functioning the first time), and said she could see improvement during the testing. She still has to score the test and return next week to provide the results, but she anticipates being able to discharge him from Speech Therapy as well. The Home Health Physical & Occupational Therapists also said this week that they feel Tristan has reached the limit of their in-home services and will begin working to transition him to out-patient therapy.

After eight weeks of being home-bound aside from follow-up visits, this feels like a major win. The fact that the pain from his organ injuries, broken ribs, and femur have improved enough that he can ride in a car without excruciating pain is a huge gain. And, while these will be more "doctor" visits, they are helping to strengthen the body, which helps strengthen the mind, and in turn brings a sense of hope, confidence, and normalcy.

Another gift came in the form of a visit to his place of employment to see his managers and co-workers. With his continued short-term-memory struggles one of his largest stressors has been whether or not he'll be able to return to his recently promoted position of Service Advisor. He worked incredibly hard to get the position and was thrilled when he was given the opportunity (a little over a month before the wreck), and the fear of losing it due to the wreck has nagged him relentlessly.

When Tristan got home from the visit he was more energetic and animated than he's been since we brought him home. It was a wonderful thing to see and I was so happy to listen to him talk animatedly about seeing everyone, and the happy vibes felt by all. While we still have no idea how long it'll take for his brain to recover and fully regain the short-term-memory, he definitely felt more hopeful after the visit.

As I'm writing this he's working on his new Porsche, BMW, and Ducati I bought him (the Lego variety...don't worry). These will help with the executive functioning and small motor skills, not to mention providing a sense of satisfaction over building something cool. Hearing his music in the background and the "click" of Lego pieces is bringing my heart such a sense of peace and gratitude. It's the little things, my friends.

Wishing you all a happy, healthy, and safe weekend.