Thursday, October 20, 2022 7:04 PM

Hello, welcome to another day in the life of… us! This beautiful sky kept me company at dinner tonight!

  Larry had already finished physio by 10:00. He did really well, including standing 5 times without nausea. I let him be for a while as the workout really zaps his energy. We did some speech & swallowing therapy. He corrects me if my number of reps don't match his.  He did arm/wrist/hand strengthening exercises. I took the weights & did a little. He said sarcastically, "Are you nauseous, are you dizzy, do you have pain anywhere?" It's what he gets asked at least 6 X a day & especially when he is in any position other than lying flat. A sweet student nurse did all the poking today, I told Larry it was her birthday (which it wasn't) Larry in his loudest crackliest voice sang 'Happy Birthday' to her. He was pretty funny.

 Shane came as Larry was just transferred to his wheelchair. He was happy to see his dad wheeling himself out of the room & down the hall. We had a short visit outside the unit, when we were summoned to come back, as it was time to hook up Larry's tube feed. Shane tuned the guitar, but Larry wasn't in the mood to play it. I know it will need to be tuned every time I bring it in. Of course, it would be easiest if we could leave it there, but we were advised not to.

 My grandma taught me a solitaire card game called 'Clock'! Larry got the hang of it right away, and really shows how well his thought process is doing.

  The excitement of the day is that a patient who has not made a sound since his stroke a month ago, started projecting words today. What a joy that was for his family & for anyone hearing it.

   I got to lay my head on Larry's shoulder as he wrapped his arm around me. I sang in his ear "You'll never know just how much I love you…" Then he sang it back to me, enjoying the crackly way it came out, like a young teen when his voice changes. It was refreshing to have him be so cheeky, not only with me, but the staff as well. I'll bring his guitar in again & hope that it's tuned enough to suit him & he plays it for a while.

 I just wanted to get home tonight. It was 5:30 & something told me to go north to the dyke along the Pitt River. The clouds were magnificent today & certainly not disappointing at sunset. 'Sunset kissing the day goodnight!' (I first heard that from my sister.) Walking along the dyke felt so good. The air was just right & my whole being soaked in the beauty that surrounded me. I always like to look in a direction where I see nothing man made. Nothing is more beautiful than God's creation. How blessed we are, to enjoy the beautiful part of the world we live in. We're 2 weeks away from losing an hour of daylight, so I'm trying to keep up with the timing of each day's sunset. I included sunset photos (in 'Pics') from my detour on my journey home tonight. Hope you got to enjoy the 'kiss' of tonight's sunset.

 God bless you! Thank you for staying with us on Larry's journey to wellness & strength.