Dad's Update XXII - 12-4-11
“The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” (Judges 6:12b)
“Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5)
Dearest friends and family,
Please note there is a special painting auction email coming right after this one (Part 2 of 2). Also see video links in next paragragh.
We crossed the 2-year anniversary on August 30th, 2011! Bryce and I flew to Colorado College on that day for his last undergraduate semester, only 6 months behind in his senior year because he cranked straight through the summer to catch up. His advisor said he did so well in his International Political Economy major that he should consider graduate school at Princeton or Harvard! Wow! Bryce has finished all his major credits and only has a few courses remaining to graduate; he will complete coursework in January 2012 and formally graduate in May 2012. We celebrated his success and grit with a drive up Pikes Peak, capturing the event with his best friend, Mike Arnsteen, and getting Bryce up over 14,000 feet for the first time. See this recent 5-minute video at http://vimeo.com/33085227, Finishing Up Strong, for a quick update and his Pikes Peak climb. For the many who missed the 20-minute video of Bryce’s story last June, Perseverance under Pressure, see it at http://vimeo.com/22866712. (If the video stutters, click pause for 10-15 seconds to let the download get ahead, then hit play again. It’s a large HD file.) Bryce composed, produced, and lead the accompanying music as lead guitar in this video.
Sooooo…..where do we go from here?
Denver!
Bryce wants to live in Denver after college. Many of his friends are there, the climate is wonderful and easy on quadriplegics (300 days of sunshine/year), the land is relatively flat, and Craig Hospital (“home base”) is there. His next challenge involves learning how to drive. Craig has a transportation advisory service and offers needed outpatient physical therapy. A myriad of technical details need to be worked out and resolved before he can get behind the wheel in his wheel chair. Once we determine his upper body strength and supplemental equipment needs, we can begin the van ordering process with appropriate electric and electromechanical customization. This process will take 3-6 months. Bryce has done only minimal physical therapy over the past two years while he prioritized his free time completing college coursework, so this will be tough work. The process begins January 2nd with his second Craig re-evaluation! Driving will be the key to really expanding his independence.
Bryce currently envisions staying in Denver for at least 1-2 years, then applying to international relations/law graduate school. Depending on scholarship and financial aid, he may come east for graduate school, but Denver University has attractive degrees too. Washington D.C. is also on his radar. I already call him “Ironsides” after Perry Mason in that classic TV show from yesteryear. Bryce has an amazing ability to listen intently, process, and speak quite deliberately – drives old Dad crazy with incisive questions!
Medical Progress
Medically, Bryce is doing quite well. He pushes his manual wheelchair, E-motion assisted, around quite easily now and prefers to stay out of the motor chair. Arm movements have strengthened to the point that he can eat meals with normal utensils with minimum “distraction.” Even though his fingers still don’t move, he now writes with a special hand tool and takes essay exams with other students. His skin issues have largely been subdued through prudent care and movement techniques. His biggest challenge continues to be recurrent bladder infections, typical for quads and paras, which keep coming back too often. Being on antibiotics makes him feel sick and sometimes he gets autonomic dysreflexia (“AD”), which involves blocked body messages to the brain causing auto-reflex response actions such as high blood pressure, increased heart rate, and sweats; the events can be scary and potentially dangerous situations. Overall, he has been blessed with remarkably good health and has slogged through the AD bouts.
Keefe?
Some of you have asked about Keefe? After Keefe won the New England crew championship with The Kent School (2nd boat) last summer, and pushed Dad like a mule up Mt. Chicora and Mt. Lafayette in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, we dropped him off at The Naval Academy on June 30th for Induction Day. His golden locks were shaved off, and we watched Keefe, with honor and excitement, move on to a life of United States military service. Somehow he made it through plebe summer in Maryland’s hottest summer on record and is currently grinding through 7 fall courses, memorizing loads of information under pressure, and rowing in the Freshman crew program. He just loves it!
