July 25 (Wednesday) - 10pm

It's been a good day overall, with Jeannette holding her own and Rich improving as well.   There are good things to tell for Jeanette; her O2 blood level is good, her pressure is excellent and her temperature is normal.   All the vital signs are where they should be; but there are other things that have grabbed the doctors attention today and they are worrisome.   The white cell count is up, indicating a possible source of infection, and they are changing the dressings again to take that important "look."   

They are concerned about one of her broken legs more than the other; and the metal contraption that has stabilized it could now be the source of the hidden infection and if so, then there will be the need to remove it even though it is doing something they need to be done.   Again the art of medicine, more than the science.   Another tradeoff in the list of tradeoffs that the doctors discuss and make the decisions that keep her in that delicate balance.  

Today they started to feed her via a tube; a major decision that will test the surgery that built her intestines back after the accident.  It's another milestone; another gate that must be crossed.  In order to get well you have to eat.   I'm not sure what the diet is; it's not something I've ever seen on any restaurant menu.   Still, it strikes the senses as a day of progress.

Rich sits 50 miles away, still confused on where exactly he is and why.  He knows he was in an accident, but he thinks it was with a motorcycle.   He went through a long detailed discussion today on how to cook his dinner; which pot to use, what seasonings were needed, and exactly where each component could be found.   It starts out as a comical discussion, but it makes me anxious.   I want him to start to figure out things.   But perhaps not right now.   Not right this minute anyway.   

Besides his head there is some concern with his liver output; something about bilirubin levels being somewhat elevated.  We know his liver took a hit during the accident, and he is somewhat jaundiced today.   But the doctors feel its not unexpected, and the introduction of real food today and the continuing healing going on should see the numbers come back down.  Still, its another number, another worry when we would wish for a more simple, straightforward worry-free recovery.   Once again we are reminded of the balance, the oh-so-slow process of recovery that moves at its own slow pace.

There is one more final thing worth telling.   As Sam sat by her mom tonight she was watching the dance of lines cross the monitors, staring at the blips and the lines and the pulses that indicate the life they are tied to.  Suddenly she noticed something she had not before; a simple thing in a way, a coincidence perhaps.  But as she watched, she noticed that Jeannette's blood pressure numbers were exactly the same as Rich's had been when she had been to his hospital earlier in the day.   One and the same, a match.  Two people in sync, almost as if two hearts were beating as one.