Laughter

This past weekend, my parents went out of town, and I spent Saturday and Sunday afternoon with Aron. It was nice to spend some alone time with him. We hung out on the patio and mostly I told him stories and read him the autobiography of Johnny Cash.

He's been laughing a lot lately when things are funny. The interaction is nice, and really affirms that he hears us. On Sunday, we brought Augie, and Aron really enjoyed seeing him eat, crawl around, and make noise. Augie puts a smile on everyone's face, including Aron's!

Loved and Missed Everyday

As we approach the anniversary of Aron’s accident, I wanted to again thank everybody for their support. This has not been an easy year for any of us, but over and over again I have been overwhelmed both by God’s grace and by the support and prayers of Aron’s friends, family, classmates, co-workers, and students.

Throughout the past year, I’ve experienced God’s faithfulness in so many ways. He has been my comfort and shelter in the midst of this storm. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about and pray for Aron and his loved ones. I miss him everyday. Everything I do reminds me of him … especially the things we enjoyed together: church, Bible study, surfing, cruising his Novas or my Camaro... I know we all miss him in different ways. Aron is so loved and means so much to so many people.

As my heart aches, I am continually reminded of my need for Christ and constantly cry out to Him for comfort, and He is faithful. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about this C.S Lewis quote, “I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time- waking and sleeping. It doesn't change God- it changes me.” I have definitely experienced this during the past year, and I have been amazed at the way that God has softened my broken and hardened heart to finally be able to pray for His will and not my own. It’s a hard prayer to pray in earnest, one that for me has only been possible by His grace and mercy. I’ve realized that I do not need to be able to understand God’s will to be able to trust Him. I am thankful that He has not abandoned us in our heartache and that He is strong in my weakness.

Thank you for your encouraging notes and especially for continuing to visit Aron. Thank you for continuing to follow Aron’s progress and praying for his continued recovery.

As of this post, this blog has been viewed 74,627 times from every continent, and the Steve’s Nova Site posting about Aron’s progress has been viewed 24,088 times. I’m blessed by this reminder that Aron is not forgotten, not by God and not by those that love him.

-Amy

sense of humor in tact

A few weekends ago, I brought Augie to see Aron. My mom, Augie, and I were outside, talking. It was a nice breezy day, and my mom was holding Augie over Aron. At one point, Augie drooled, and the drool was caught by the wind, and went all over the place. Aron smiled, then chuckled. It was a nice interaction. A bit later, my mom said something that in the past, both my brother and I would have been like, "moooooommmm!", and before I could say "moooommmm" at her mom-ism, Aron laughed!

Since then, my dad has been telling Aron stories, and he will laugh or show emotion at the correct time. My parents are very uplifted by this. He also plays xbox, and will "shoot" when you tell him to.


We continue to pray and hope for Aron to recover.

smile

The photo above was taken May 4. From time to time, Aron will smile - if my parents are doing something amusing, or if he finishes a good therapy session. When these moments happen, it's nice for us because we get a glimpse of the old Aron. This is a nice picture of him but should come with a disclaimer - sometimes his facial expressions are disturbing, and it's clear that he is uncomfortable or unhappy. In case anyone is wondering - the red thing at his neck is the plug for his trach.

Just yesterday my dad was working with him to try and get some intentional sounds to come out. My dad was in Aron's face asking him to say "HA". My dad kept doing it, and about three quarters of the time, Aron did it back. This must have looked pretty funny to Aron, because he laughed at my dad. He's been making noise, and sometimes my parents can get him to say "ah" or something like that.

At therapy last week, he was being asked to do something, and instead reached up and scratched his nose. Maybe not a big deal for the rest of us, but a big deal for Aron. He also is still playing xbox and working with the iPad. His anti siezure meds have been further reduced and my parents report that he is more clear.

On May 7, a group of Nova buddies came to the hospital and visited with Aron. My parents want to express their gratitude for everyone who came out to spend some time with my brother.

Aron's B-Day 2010

iPad, Xbox, and A

It's been ten months today since Aron's accident. My parents continue to see him each day, often being present for therapy which ranges from working at the bedside to being supported by a walking machine. He continues to receive therapy four days a week and he is in good physical health.

A few recent highlights of the past month:

The Dunn Family bought Aron an iPad, which can be loaded with various apps to help him communicate with us. Right now he seems to be interested in the iPad and will touch the screen. He seems very interested in photos and videos.

My parents brought Aron's Xbox and at first he didn't do much of anything with it, but he's started to hold the control and manipulate the buttons and trigger.

The anti-seizure medication has been reduced and will continue to be reduced further if Aron doesn't show signs of being at risk for a seizure. This is a big step as my parents feel the meds make Aron apathetic and tired.

A recent EEG showed slow brain waves on the left side, but no seizures.

My mom has been working to get Aron to write, and he made a very rough "A".


My dad and mom work tirelessly with Aron and remain hopeful for his eventual recovery. Through all this, we are thankful he is still with us and making steps in the right direction.

cruise and update

This past Saturday, my dad and I drove Aron's 1967 Nova wagon in a car cruise with over 100 other Novas. Aron would have loved this event: at one point on the freeway, there was a traffic break and four lanes across and as far back as I could see, there were Novas. My dad and I were one of the lead cars, along with Amy and her dad in Amy's Nova wagon. Once we arrived at our destination, there was a banner on Aron's car for people to sign - you can see us holding it in the above photo. My dad and I held up better than I expected - but it was such an Aron event I kept expecting to see him walk by or hear a "Hey Dad" or "Hey Sister" at any moment.

He continues to receive therapy, and a few recent highlights: He can hold himself in a seated position on the edge of the bed, and the other day, he reached across his body and picked up an object (his cell phone) and transferred it to the other side of his body. This was done with help, but was a pretty big step. He hasn't spoken yet of consequence - every now and again a word comes out, but rarely. His vision was examined yesterday, and he could follow an object in front of his face when it went back and forth, however there is some limited movement in his left eye. He can identify things correctly, at times: my mom brought his graphing calculator, and told him to press certain keys, and he pressed the correct keys. I should also say there are times when he does nothing at all, even when prompted, and that is just the nature of the recovery process.

We continue to hope and pray for his eventual return.