Let’s do it

Jenny and I dropped off Gary and Sarah at the airport at 5:30. They had already been to the hospital at 4 to see Mike before they left. They informed us that the breathing tube was about to come out as they were leaving. That was good news. The healing process has begun. Getting the breathing tube out was a great step forward for Mike and all of us as well.

Jen and I got to the hospital around 6 this morning and saw Mike wide awake and without breathing assistance. He was talking too. His voice was scratchy due to the circumstances of the last 24 hours, but it was his voice and without a doubt, the sweetest sound Jen and I have heard. Mike, just hours removed from a life-risking surgery, was his wonderful self again. He was happy to communicate and we were thrilled to hear it. There were three words in particular that we were happy to hear. When the nurse asked Mike if he would be willing to try to sit on the edge of the bed, he emphatically exclaimed, “Let’s do it”. Really? Did you expect anything else from him?

Not only did Mike sit on the edge of the bed, he eventually stood up and sat in a regular chair for nearly an hour. During this time he drank a little coffee, took some pain medications, and chatted with us about…well, stuff. The main thing that he spoke about was, ironically enough, his inability to explain how he was feeling. Not the post-op pain that we all knew was inevitable. Not the nausea that accompanied his first movement and intake of fluids in nearly a day. What eluded Mike was the words to describe how it felt to be alive. Just to wake up and know that he did it. He has a week in the hospital to find his adjectives, but elated, relieved, overjoyed, blessed, and grateful all come to my mind right away.

This morning, Jenny and I saw a man whose love for life and will to live propelled him off a hospital bed that many would have just as soon stayed in (at least for a while longer). Mike didn’t seem to care or acknowledge that staying put was an option. He was ready to feel the Earth (at least the floor of the ICU) under his feet again. The words may escape him for now, but he is infinitely grateful to be alive and recovering. His spirits are great and he is ready to do it.

Here are a couple more of the pics that Jenny and I took with our phones in Mike’s room.

These are the incisions on Mike’s right leg where the vein that now resides in his heart was taken from.

This is Mike with his heart pillow that he uses when he coughs. Coughing is painful for him, but essential in preventing pneumonia. The heart pillow is from OHSU and has an accurate depiction of the actual organ on it.

Keep up the prayers and love. Mike greatly appreciates it as does Judy, Jenny, Gary, and myself.

Pat