Seeing Spencer

We just got back from our first trip to Colorado since Christmas. I was so anxious to get over there that we left the weekend after all my teaching obligations were finished. I'm always excited to see my family and to take a trip to Colorado, but this time, I needed to get over there so I could see Spencer.

The last time I saw Spencer, he looked like this.

Now, he looks like this!

Not too bad, eh?! He looks a little different because he's lost some weight and now wears glasses, but other than that, we've got our Spencer back! Even though we got out to Denver on Saturday night, we weren't able to see Spencer, Jen and their girls until Tuesday evening. I was so happy when they arrived at my parents house! I'd talked with Spencer on the phone, but nothing was better than seeing him walk in with a smile on his face. I'm happy to report that he is doing so well! I stopped doing "Spencer updates" a while back once he started making fast progress in the rehab unit at Spaulding Hospital in Denver. He made amazing strides in his physical therapy, quickly mastering all the basics and then moving beyond them to strengthen any muscle weakness he had. He also made impressive progress with his speech therapy and all the cognitive rehab. They had him practicing mental drills that most of us would have real difficulty with. I'm so grateful for how hard they pushed him. Spencer has always been a very smart guy and they needed to get him back to his rocket scientist/engineer status. Thankfully, this happened/is happening very quickly.

Spencer got to leave the hospital the Sunday we left on our cruise (first weekend of May). The whole family was together (except us, unfortunately) and he was able to participate in my little nephew's baby blessing that day. Since then, he's been doing outpatient rehab and has continued to make such amazing progress that he actually went back to work last Thursday while we were still in town. His therapist went with him to do an assessment on what needs may arise as he enters the work place again (i.e. can he actually see the computer screen?). I talked to Spencer that afternoon again and he sounded so happy and positive. He said he didn't realize how much he'd missed being at work! Thankfully, he has a job that he enjoys and colleagues that have stood by him with nothing but 100% support. I think it was great for Spencer to see that he was missed. It's always nice to be needed. They even have some projects they are ready for him to get working on. It looks like he'll be going in twice this next week, three times the week after that, and apparently, he's wanting to work everyday in July. Hopefully that's with shortened hours, but who knows?! I am so amazed by all of this.

So, for the most part, Spencer will have his life back. Of course, it will never be like the accident never happened. He is now blind in his left eye and will now always need to wear glasses. Using a contact in his good eye is too risky, because if he gets an infection or scratches the cornea or something, he doesn't have back up. We're lucky that we haven't seen any major personality changes as a result of the brain injury. The main difference is that Spencer is much more chatty than before! No offense, Spence, but you almost talk as much as Dad and me now! I love it! My favorite thing to report, though, is that he's still our awesome, silly, ol' Spencey who refuses to look normal in pictures! You can't see it well, but he's crossing his eyes in this picture with Jen and Greta!

Spencer said that he's hoping to start running again. I don't know why, but this fills me with happiness! He's wanting to run the Bolder Boulder 10K next year in May and Paul and I promised that if he did it, we'd come out and run it with him. I think running 6.2 miles next to my brother who potentially could have never walked again as a result of this accident would be one of the best ways I could spend an hour! Hopefully, he doesn't intend to become wicked fast, but if he does, I'll do what I can to rise to the challenge!

I'm so proud of my brother. I'm so happy that he is getting his life back. I'm proud of how well they've been hanging in there together as a family. I'm so grateful to Jennifer for her love and support for Spencer. I'm sure that in the last 2.5 months she has felt the full spectrum of emotions, from debilitating panic to the deepest joy and relief. She has amazing strength and I admire her in every way. She is truly an elect lady and I love her so much! What a journey they have travelled together.

So even though we had some other great adventures this last week, seeing Spencer was the highlight for me. Love ya, Spence! Keep up the great work!