Goodbye wheelchair.
Hello guitar.

Tatay can walk!

They went to the rehab doctor yesterday for a check-up and a PT session. The doctor said, in his entire career, he had never seen someone recover from a stroke as rapidly as Tatay. In his joy over Tatay's swift recovery---he wrote Tatay down for extra sessions. Occupational therapy this time, so they can start working on finer hand movements and the like.

They told us to let Tatay walk around the house as soon as he was up to it.

Tatay's been "up to it" since Sunday. He's been raring to get out of the wheelchair.

So this morning, we gave him the quad-cane and let him walk from his bed to the breakfast table. It took a little longer, of course, and his steps were still a little tentative, but he made it. We didn't need to help him either.

I remember Tatay and I were talking just this Sunday. He told me he was resigned to never playing the guitar again. He said it was foolish to hope.

He changed his mind today. If he can talk in two weeks, raise his arm in four, and walk in a month, we're all looking forward to what he'll be able to do in a couple of months. If he can stand and if he can walk, it'll only be a matter of time before he can dance again. If he can raise his arm and wiggle his fingers, it'll only be a matter of time before he can play his guitar again.

"I can't argue anymore," he told us today, "To argue is to question God's ability to do the impossible."

One month. We are humbled by how God continues to work in our lives.

Yup. Better start looking for a good restaurant...

It's been almost a month since Tatay had his stroke. He has an appointment with his rehab doctor this coming Wednesday so she can check his progress.

I have a feeling she's in for a surprise.

Since we last saw Dr. Alviar, my father's speech has returned to normal. He no longer struggles to find the right word for something, and he can outtalk Nanay and me. (As for Anne...well, nobody can outtalk her I think. ) Tatay's smile isn't lopsided anymore. We constantly try to find ways of making him laugh just so we can see him smile.

The past few days, we've seen him stand for longer and longer periods of time. He can stand unassisted for forty minutes now. Two days ago, he could already raise his right arm slightly. And he wiggled his toes on his right foot the other day.

But even better than all of that--today, he discovered that he can move his right leg again!

I was keeping Tatay company in the green room while Anne and Nanay were preparing lunch. I was typing something on my laptop, and Tatay was praying quietly. When I looked over my shoulder, Tatay was lifting his right leg and bending his knee. I called Nanay and Anne so they could see, and we all had an impromptu celebration. Hugs all around.

We are thankful because God keeps His promises to His children. All things do work together for the good of those who love Him (etcetera). We are thankful because He answers prayers. We are thankful because He continues to give us one miracle after another.

Tatay promised Anne we'd all eat out as soon as he can walk. I think it's time to start scouting around for a good restaurant.

Sorry for the silence. We've been pretty busy the past few days.

Anyhoo. Tatay's first week at home:

• We've worked out a schedule among us so that someone stays awake with Tatay most of the day. The first few days, it was me (insomniac) and my cousins Mikel (anime-aficionado) and Mariel (nurse-in-training). The first two nights, all three of us were up during the wee hours of the morning, so Nanay could catch up on much-needed sleep. We managed to ward off sleep with an ongoing anime marathon, frequent midnight and post-midnight snacking, and readings from various Terry Pratchett novels. Although we were able to keep awake, the three of us usually wound up sprawled in random semi-conscious poses on the living room floor by around nine or ten am. So we started keeping Tatay company in shifts instead. At night it's usually the cousins, with Nanay waking up once in a while to check, during the day, it's Nanay, Anne and Tatay's brothers.
• Saturday morning, I woke up to the sound of the family car running in the street in front of our house. I went out and saw that someone was warming up the engine. Probably Miks, I thought. Someone opened the back door for me. It was Mar. I slid into the back seat and saw that Miks was in the front passenger seat. Tatay was "driving".Miks had let him start up the car. Tatay gave me his half-smile through the rear-view mirror. We sat in the car for a while, enjoying the airconditioning and radio music. When it was time to park the car and wheel Tatay back into the house, he told us he had lots of fun. (Aside: Now he has one more reason to exercise the muscles in his right side more. Miks reminded him that he needs his right foot for the gas and his right hand for the gear shift.)
• Ever since Ernie Update number 5, Tatay's been getting a steady stream of visitors. A couple of pastors from church dropped by, plus our Bible study group, the church's "Hakot Boys", and some of Tatay's friends. They come bearing flowers, get well cards, and fruit baskets. (Aside:Thanks to you, our crisper continually overflows with apples, oranges and bananas. Yummy ) The visits cheer Tatay up.
  
• Mealtimes have become regular family reunions lately. Breakfasts are small affairs compared to the production numbers we've come to know as Lunch and Dinner. Over the weekend, we had frequent gatherings of Santoses, Bustrilloses, Zamoras, Yaps and Carpios. And plenty of food. Tatay's off the soft diet. He usually eats whatever we eat now, occasionally turning down the ice cream and the beef. (Food conscious na ulit si Doc.)
• Tatay's vision has finally returned to normal. Ever since the stroke, he had a bad case of double-vision. A little rambling: When he was at PGH, Anna sent him a cardboard tube of M&Ms with a felt version of Red stuck on top. We stood it on top of the TV so Tatay could see it. When he was released, we brought it home, still unopened, and put it on top of the table in his room. A couple of days ago, he asked Nanay: where's the other one? How come there's only one? He watched part of Ghostbusters today.
  
• Thanks to Nurse Mariel, we've been learning how to help Tatay with his PT exercises. His PT sessions here usually involve plenty of lively music and back-up dancers (Mar, Miks, Anne, Nanay and me.) PT is usually exhausting for Tatay, but we try to keep things light. His right side is getting stronger. He can stand better, and he can move his right leg and right arm slightly now. When we were doing the facial exercises with him, Mar and I noticed that both sides of his face smile now. The half-smile is finally gone.
  
• Tatay started weekly PT sessions at LBDH this Tuesday. Tito Gards, drove him and Nanay there. Tatay came home encouraged and determined to continue his exercises. He can't wait to drive his car.
  

God is continually working in our lives. We see evidence of that every day. We are bearing up in spite of the circumstances. We get tired and discouraged, but someone always pops up to cheer us all up. We have Tito Oca, Tita Alfin, Lolo, Lola, Tito Boy, Tito Gards and all of our other relatives to help us make sure we don't miss a thing. We have Mariel, our resident nurse, to help us with the technical stuff. We have Miks and Gani to help us run our errands. We have Ate Glo, Roseanne to bring us meals so Anne doesn't have to cook too much. We have the perpetually cheerful Anne, who helps keep us sane by keeping the house in order. We have people constantly praying for us.

God has funny ways of providing for everything we need. When we were wondering where we could borrow a hospital bed and a wheelchair, Tito Oca and Lolo and Lola had already arranged for them to be brought to the house. Even before we could start looking for a quad-cane, some of our family friends already got one for Tatay. Someone always happens to bring us something to eat or snack on. Just when it's time to go to the supermarket for fruit, another basket comes in. (The only food problem we have is dealing with all the leftovers so they don't go to waste. As a result, we're all rapidly gaining weight.)

God uses even the smallest things to encourage us. A surprise visit from friends. A warm (non-lopsided) smile from Tatay.

We don't know how long this will take, but it looks like God's making sure we'll make it through the long haul.