12.21 Day 50

I sat under this canopy last evening after sunset to relax with a medicinal drink and thought back on the last 50 nights here at Cedars-Sinai. I'm so grateful to the doctors and nurses and Clinical Partners who all supported Henry and me during our long stay, first in ICU and then here in the general hospital. Henry is alive because of the hard work the trauma team did on him when he came into the Emergency Room on November 1. It took 7 hours for them to stop the bleeding and clear his lungs of blood and fluid. The injuries were catastrophic and the first four days were very tenuous for him. I sat up with him and promised him I would be there when he woke up...But he would not be alive if it were not also for his strong will to live. When I asked him if the amputation bothered him he replied -No. I'm alive!- and that's all he needed to say.

Now 50 days into this he's ready to begin the process of healing and the rehabilitation of his body and mind. I know he is fierce and he has the will to thrive.

Day 50
Be fierce and thrive...
—Philip