Fast trip to PA

Hearing encouraging news from Pennsylvania about my dad's progress, I made reservations to fly out July 18 and stay through the 28th. However, on July 4th my sister phoned and said his kidneys were failing and the doctor said they should call in the family. He had only been in the rehab center for less than two days.

I was frantic. I phoned Alaska Airlines and explained the situation, hoping for an early flight out of Fairbanks. They were extremely helpful, and less than 24 hours later I was in Harrisburg. I spent the entire trip alternately crying, praying and hoping he would still be alive when I arrived.

My brother picked me up at the airport and we stopped at the hospital where he was in ICU. He was awake and alert and his kidney failure had completely reversed itself. The doctor told us later it was caused by severe dehydration.

I spent the next 10 days at my old home with my mother. Much of the time I was on the porch in Dad's chair, taking photos of his flowers, the squirrels and rabbits and his beloved hummingbirds. We went to see him every day, but the time was like a yo-yo. He spent several days in the hospital, then was transferred back to rehab.

The next day, as we were driving to the rehab center to visit him, we got a call that his heart rate was seriously elevated and erratic and he was on his way back to the emergency room at the hospital. We arrived before the ambulance crew had even completed their gathering of equipment. The doctors were afraid he was prefacing another heart attack, so he stayed in the hospital (again) for several more days.

He is now back at rehab, walking with a cane several times a day and is in physical, occupational and speech therapy sessions daily.  I am cautiously optimistic that this time will work. He does not want to even discuss nursing homes.

The stroke has affected his manual dexterity a good bit. He has a tough time holding utensils, but has been feeding himself most of the time since he started.

He sometimes has to think of a word, but his speech is clear enough to understand, though very soft. He appears to have his memory intact and he has not lost any of his sense of humor.

It is very hard to see him struggle like this. More than once it brought me to tears to see this once vital man work so hard to simply bring a spoonful of soup or a sandwich to his mouth. I had to leave the room, because I wanted to remain positive when I was around him. I'm still trying to remain positive and believe that his determination and willpower will pull him through it.

All that said, I'm so grateful I had a chance to see him again and assure myself that he hasn't changed fundamentally - just the shell. I did enjoy spending some time with my mother, brother and sisters, as well as numerous and nephews.

I arrived back in Fairbanks July 14 and was so happy to see it was not 90+ degrees and humid. I love seeing my family - though not in these circumstances - but that weather makes me miserable.

Many thanks to all of you who left comments and e-mailed me with thoughts and prayers for my dad. They were all appreciated.