Back to the Real World

It's back to the real world for me...whatever that may be. Spring Break has ended, so I'm back at work and Billy is at the Cottage. I wrote in my last post that our trip to Midland would be a guage to see how well Billy can travel. He did really well, and I'm so thankful. Our daughter, Shelley, went with us, so I had a lot of help driving. Billy's anxiety was controlled enough that he didn't seem to fret unreasonably the entire way. His perception of time has changed drastically, and he thought the trip from Fort Worth to Midland would take about three hours when it was actually closer to five. He "helps" with navigation all the time, and I handle it pretty well, but I wasn't at all certain about him helping Shelley, but he was calmer and she was more patient. As it turned out, we all had a wonderful time staying with good friends, and we had a mini-reunion of about 10 great friends from our "old" Care Group that met weekly for years. Billy was comfortable and seemed to genuinely enjoy the visit. Thank you to the Futrells for opening their home to everyone.

I'm still trying to comprehend the donations we've received from so many great people. THANK Y OU! Those words seem so small compared to my gratitude, but I would rather say that than nothing. I've written many notes lately, and they are being mailed today. I hope they convey our appreciation. I did tell Billy about the donations and how they came about. He was very touched and teared up about it. In true AD fashion, though, he didn't remember it. On our way to Midland, he asked me if we had enough money to buy gas and get back home. I assured him we could handle the cost of the gas to get home, even at $3.45 a gallon! I do know he has some comprehension of the goodness of all these people, though. Because he is never far away from me, he wanted to know why I was writing all these notes lately. I told him they were "thank you" notes, and he looked puzzled for a moment, then said...."For that thing Jonathan did?" Yes, that thing that Jonathan, Debra, Don, and so many others did.