Ellen is a tough bird able to withstand any adversity she has to deal with. She doesn’t have much in her life, she can’t speak or really eat by herself, we have to govern how she drinks and not give her plastic utensils to eat with for fear that she would break them in her mouth.
Walking was one of the things she always had in her life. It was her one sense of freedom and accomplishment. To take away her ability to walk is painful for her parents. When she came home to us for Sunday dinner, she loved to hide behind a wall and pop her head out to smile at me and say: “Hey, here I am, look at me!”
Since September, Ellen has been bed-bound, jerry chair and wheelchair bound. She has not walked on her own and has dealt with unsuccessful tries at rehab in a quest to get her to walk again, on her own.
Recently I visited her at her home and she showed frustration and a willingness to walk. Try to liberate herself from the restrictions she fought to get out of the chair. So, I decided to go to her rehab and see if I could speed the process. I checked with her physical therapist to ask if I could join in this fight and they agreed that maybe it was time to join the fight.
Along with TLW (The Little Woman), we went together and as a team, she is responding. Not only is she trying, but she is also telling us she wants to walk by raising her arms to us. She seems to be taking steps little by little and hopefully, she will take off.
But it amazes me that she has this deep want in her own simple yet complicated way to say I want to walk. Daddy, don’t let me down help!
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