We went to see Billy & Gina tonight (it was Gina’s birthday, btw). We had a fantastic visit. Thanks to God, Billy continues to improve! He did physical therapy, speech therapy, and some other sort of therapy (the memory fades) today, so he was tired, but he really seems to be improving. He had much better control of his arms – he was able to move his covers with much better control than I’ve seen him do before, and seemed to have no trouble pointing to people or things in the room when trying to communicate. His speech is beginning to come around, as well. On previous trips I haven’t been able to actually understand anything he tried to say, but today I was able to understand several things he said. The best was when a friend of Billy’s named Zola was leaving. She said she’d be back in a few days; Billy said “I’ll try to be here!”, which cracked everyone up.
The overall mood was really jovial. Billy has to wear a helmet a lot because of the missing piece of skull. When we came in, I asked Billy if he was planning to go skateboarding, which made him smile. Gina started talking about getting people to sign his helmet like a cast, and I could see this look of horror come over Billy’s face. I suggested that it didn’t sound any too manly, and Billy nodded agreement. Then a few minutes later, when they were putting on these padded shoes he is supposed to wear (I’m not sure why) I teased him about wearing smurf shoes. He didn’t really think that was too funny!
All in all, it was a wonderful visit. We’re just praising God for the improvement we’re seeing in Billy day by day. Keep praying for his healing and Gina’s strength; also for her blood sugar which continues to be a problem.
Also, be in prayer for some non-medical needs the Patty’s have. They have a house in Townsend they’ve been trying to sell for almost a year, and an RV that they’ll soon be trying to sell. These two unresolved items are very troubling to Gina, and it would do wonders for her stress level if they would both sell soon. Please pray for these to sell quickly.
Thank you all for your faithfulness in prayer.
-joe
