 Cousin Alex | Cousin Alex Javier and Gaby visited David and were amazed to see him feeding on his own with little assistance. I kept thanking the Lord for the graces and the peace we experienced all the time and thanked Our Lady for always protecting us. |
On the Monday of Thanksgiving week, the Avalon Park representative came to evaluate David. To every command David responded like a champ and stood up twice and sat down on his own. Julissa talked to him about David’s progress. He mentioned that David was ready for rehab and that he would contact us with information on the program. I felt grateful that he had not been able to make it before. At that moment I realized that it had been a perfect day for the evaluation.
God our Father kept saying not to fear and to trust him all along. I had to remember not to dwell into fear, because it would confuse and deceive me to believe the Father has abandoned us. That is a tough temptation to resist because it draws us away from God by loosing our faith. I just needed to open my heart and not fear during the “waiting” time.
The next few days David was in deep thought. He remained still and quiet.
The new speech therapist, Imbal, was pleased with David’s disposition in learning how to spell by dragging letters into place on an Ipad.
God our Father kept saying not to fear and to trust him all along. I had to remember not to dwell into fear, because it would confuse and deceive me to believe the Father has abandoned us. That is a tough temptation to resist because it draws us away from God by loosing our faith. I just needed to open my heart and not fear during the “waiting” time.
The next few days David was in deep thought. He remained still and quiet.
The new speech therapist, Imbal, was pleased with David’s disposition in learning how to spell by dragging letters into place on an Ipad.
Eddy L. came to visit and made David laugh with an inside joke which he understood and I rejoiced for that moment of encapsulated memory. He left several movies for David to watch.
Thanksgiving day arrived.
Many of the residents had left to be with family for the weekend so the facility was pretty empty. I had arranged, signed all the paperwork and coordinated the transportation for David’s first trip to Eddy and Ana Carolina’s apartment the next day. We were all anxious for Friday after Thanksgiving to arrive.
In the meantime, Aunt Flor had Ana Carolina cook at her house and together prepared a special feast. Noemy had prepared another feast at her sons’ Alex Javier’s apartment.
In the meantime, Aunt Flor had Ana Carolina cook at her house and together prepared a special feast. Noemy had prepared another feast at her sons’ Alex Javier’s apartment.
Noemy prepared a feast at cousin Alex's apartment.
Back home, my son Fernando cooked his first turkey as well - along with Josuan (dad’s personal assistant), who remained at home helping with the dogs while Jorge would travel back and forth to and from Miami. It was the first time in over 30 years that I would not cook the special “pavochon” or turkey.
Uncle Hector and cousins Alex Javier and Hector Luis visited before joining the rest of the family for the Thanksgiving banquet. Visiting from Puerto Rico, cousins Cristina and her husband Chemi also came to spend some time.
Uncle Hector and cousins Alex Javier and Hector Luis visited before joining the rest of the family for the Thanksgiving banquet. Visiting from Puerto Rico, cousins Cristina and her husband Chemi also came to spend some time.
Cousin Cristina and husband Chemi came to visit David.
For lunch, Ana Carolina brought David his own feast. It was her first turkey and it was amazingly delicious. While they both celebrated Thanksgiving, Jorge and I left to have dinner with Aunt Flor who had prepared so many delicious plates.
Aunt Flor cooked a delicious Thanksgiving dinner.
Afterward we went to join the rest of the family at Alex’s. I continuously gave thanks to the Lord for family. What a blessing to re-energize with the warmth and love that family can offer.
The next morning I arrived at the nursing home to find David dressed and ready to go. The smile in his face was telling of the excitement of a new adventure. The staff was as thrilled as we were. They asked me to take pictures for them to enjoy later. The special van loaded David on the wheelchair and locked the chair into special hooks on the van’s floor. I sat upfront at the passenger’s seat. I kept looking at David to make sure he felt secure. He just held a smile as he looked out the window during the entire ride.
papassan chair We arrived around 11:30am. Jorge was already there. Eddy and Ana were waiting and their smiles expressed their joy of having their brother be out for the first time and spend it with them. After he was brought down and in to the apartment, we all hugged and cried. It felt unreal. We were having a moment together. Eddy sat David on a papassan chair with his legs up on an ottoman.
Eddy & Ana Carolina
We had the traditional leftover Thanksgiving lunch and David observed and listened to everything attentively.
Jorge, David and I having lunch at Eddy & Ana Carolina's place.
Ana Carolina showed him his safety box where he kept all his belongings and he immediately knew what knobs to turn to open it. Jorge and Eddy played with a remote control mini helicopter, we skyped Fernando and laughed at his turkey cooking experience.
We told stories, made funny faces on the computer and laughed together like we had not done in 6 months. It was a special time we would cherish.
Transportation picked us up around 4pm and off we went. We would do this again on Sunday and already couldn’t wait. David’s smile never left his face until he fell asleep that night.
Our Thanksgiving meant a special time to honor God and thank him for all His blessings. We were so grateful for being together. There is nothing like family. And it has nothing to do with spaces. It has everything to do with each others presence.
Our Thanksgiving meant a special time to honor God and thank him for all His blessings. We were so grateful for being together. There is nothing like family. And it has nothing to do with spaces. It has everything to do with each others presence.
