Wednesday morning after spending the night in Venice FL with some special friends we were headed home when the wife decided it was time to make a little side trip I had promised myself I would make one day. Well 1 year and 2 weeks later I walked into the rehab hospital I had been wheeled out of. Back then balance, let alone walking were always fraught with peril, now we wanted to show them how far I had come thanks to them.

First stop was the nurses station where we all recognized each other. We visited for a bit and we both thanked them for all they did for me.To the new staff I was introduced as a walkie talkie, someone who returned who was once again a functioning person. I will wear that title with honor.

Then a trip to the PT/OT wing or the palace of pain.The place where I took my second set of first steps. A couple of the therapists were there and made over me and insisted I show them how well I could walk. I made it through their little improvised obstacle course and got assurances they would tell the ones off that day what they had missed.As we headed out they were telling one of the patients that there was no reason they couldn't do the same if they wanted it bad enough.

Next stop Speech Therapy. That was the individual more than any other who put me back together, made my brain start its journey which is still underway. We approached her office and waited outside as she was on the phone. She looked at us and glanced away then back, and she recognized the wife and I. When she invited us in she gave me a big hug and I think we both got wet eyes.We spent the most time with her and she was amazed at how far I had come. When she first got me I was not aware or oriented, mostly just meat on wheels. She was responsible for reintroducing me to my brain and thinking. She asked lots of questions about how I was doing and what my challenges had been, We spent about a 1/2 hour with her.

As we left the hospital I had a flood of confused emotions, but mostly a sense of closure for both me having seen them and them seeing that all the work they do for us isn't wasted. Seeing the people who put your mind and body back together when it was just a pile of broken shards...priceless.