Family Time

For those of you who have been wondering what has happened to the Blackhursts? Why haven't they been postings on the blog? Has Will been making in any progress? Has he reached any new milestones? The answer is that progress is being made. Will's speech is becoming more amplified and less slurred. His short-term memory is coming back and his spirits are improving.
All of this is happening against a backdrop of circling wagons. His brother Chris returned from his mission to Brazil on the 18th of July. His sister Lizzie arrived four days later on the 22nd from New York, bringing her baby Simon, and whole family came together again for the first time in three and a half years.
Will is the oldest and has watched over the flock like a tender shepherd from day one, so he has been pretty animated about these reunions which give perspective and clarity. As long as your have your family, you have everything that's truly important. In the presence of those you love, no burden cannot be lifted, no sorrow cannot be shared, and no unaddressed wound cannot be healed.
There is healing in togetherness and we have witnessed that as we have caught glimpses of the old Will surfacing. We have seen it in his eyes that have become brighter and more twinkly, in his speech that is more full throated and animated, in his prayers which have been more thoughtful and reflective, and in his humor which has been filled with mirth mingled with memory. Little children seen to be especially capable of evoking responses from him that suggest a full and complete recovery.
In a recent conversation with his Rehab Doctor, Steven Edgley, he asked him the question, "What motivated you to get back to your residency after you had your stroke?" He said, "There were two things. One was all the time and effort I had put into getting through medical school. I didn't want all that work to be wasted. The other one was I had a wife and children. I wanted to be able to provide for them."
Discovering what it is that you will cross the I-Beam for is a very critical component in the healing process. For Will, as for Dr. Edgley, the answer seems to be found in the family.