We have now begun session 2, once again a class of 8 children. Three new faces, although 2 repeats (Eva, 7 who was here with us in February and Ilhan, 10) which leaves a single newcomer and the sole US resident, a 5 year old boy Dhevyn from Nevada. We said our goodbyes to Jason, Cameron and Paul (from Trinidad) and the 5 remaining moms hosted a small cocktail party prior to their departure.
At one point, one of the moms piped up and said "we should have done something like this sooner" and about four us looked at each other and replied "we have!” Since I have been here, the TV room is rarely used for watching, TV - there is far too much conversation to be had.
As always, there is one child that stands out to me more than others and this time it is Ilhan (Illy, as she likes to go by). She lives in Toronto and born to a mother from Somali, and is an identical twin. At 3 ½ years, she suffered a stroke and was not breathing for 27 minutes. For over a year, she was in a vegetable state and not given a very good prognosis. Her parents decided to discharge her from Bloorview Kids Rehab because hope was not on her side (Bloorview tends to work with kids with more potential) and did their own therapy at home – which paid off immensely. I really admire her mother's intuition and perseverance, I wonder how many of us would have held out that long, all the while feeling completely devastated at the outcome of such a tragic and shocking incident. I imagine that she must see Illy’s loss through her other child and have such vivid memories of her bubbly little girl, who apparently was so bright and advanced. Illy is one of eight children, and I can’t help wonder how her mother pulls it off…
Back to Thomas, who has thankfully turned a corner and doing extremely well in class. This change really took off during the middle of week 5 and I didn't quite believe it until it continued well into week 6. In between, he and I even drove home for a weekend, which normally would have set him back. If it wasn't obvious in my last blog, I had serious concerns as to whether or not he was going to perform at all. He finally adjusted himself and is now cooperative in all his tasks (some days receiving double stickers, which is awesome) and today used the word “fun” and “class” in the same sentence. He has also stepped up a notch in his toilet training and now wears training pants and frequently initiates trips to the potty. Much to my delight, he has also become quite social with the other children (mostly the girls), playing and sharing baths. Even during oxygen therapy, he has begun to amuse himself and play with other children, from time/time glancing at the TV. I am feeling very optimistic about the remainder of our session and I know staff must be just as relieved. Thomas is an ideal candidate for double sessions - I would have been so crushed to leave after 5 weeks.
Speaking of leaving, Adrienne and I are heading off to the Caribbean on an 8 day cruise, joining my family in a dual celebration – my sister Jayne’s wedding and my parent’s 50th wedding anniversary. Rob will be taking over duties here at Ability Camp and we may even catch an entry of his in the next blog…
For pictures taken during Thomas’ first 5 weeks, cut/paste:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/PhotoView.jsp?collid=36664016506.696338333306.1197492036556&photoid=885168333306&folderid=0&
