He has started asking me what happened to him. He assumed that he had been in an accident and that that was why he is in a wheelchair. I tell him the highlights… and then I tell him again.

He asks me questions about himself and I tell him stories of his life. I will continue to help him remember who he is until he remembers for himself. And, there is another part to all of this and that is that PenDell just went through a super reboot and he will undoubtedly come out the other side evolved. So, the stories that I tell are mostly essences. I leave it to him to fill in the pieces as his brain continues to reconstruct.

His memory is coming back to him in fragments so it is hard for him to discern the past from the present. His brain is lighting up at different levels, different times, different segments… all firing randomly. He is high-functioning in one moment and then in the next moment he is asking me what my role is in the hospital. I see him making his way back through the maze.

Today, he was telling me things as if he was still in school. When I told him that he is 64 years old he started laughing and then continued to laugh for a while… it was a tender and poignant moment.

He has not yet found his voice. He most often whispers and when he does speak, it is strained. I played the recording of him singing today. He asked me who that was. When I told him, he leaned back and closed his eyes and listened. Let’s continue to hear him sing! (Some of you have asked me to post a recording so that we can all literally hear him sing. All I have right now is a cassette tape and I am not in position to find or create a CD right now. I apologize that I can’t get that for us right now.)

I am in awe of this outworking. I am humbled and honored to be with PenDell in this process. Everything about this has been a sacred event.

Many have been moved by the atmosphere of our room. What they might not have realized is that it was pure survival for me. I had to have sanctuary to manage what we were navigating.

So, here I sit, watching and listening to him sleep in our sanctuary home within this rehab hospital. I feel supremely blessed in this process by this community. My heart is full with gratitude for your kindness, your love, your attunement, your prayers, your generosity financially, your generosity in caring for my home and my loved ones, your generosity in surrounding me, your generosity in giving me what I needed when I didn’t even know what I needed.

There is still more to this journey that will need careful navigation. We have an unknown path ahead… but then don’t we all 🙂