Rub Some Dirt On It

     If you have ever been around my husband, you know that he is a pro at sarcastic humor and one liners. As we were raising our boys, whenever they would have a little mishap that resulted in a bruise or skinned knee, he would tell them "rub some dirt on it". When they were little, sometimes this would throw them into a tizzy, as they wanted something to fix the hurt....a bandaid, and ice pack, or just some good old-fashioned boo-boo kissing. As they got older and started playing sports, this saying became something of a joke in our home. When one of them would severely sprain an ankle, break a hip, or even tear their ACL, their dad could often be heard saying "rub some dirt on it". Don't think for one minute that just because Cenah is a girl that he has been different. In fact, he tells her the same thing, and being a girl and having girl emotions, this is often not the most effective way of communicating with her, as you can imagine. So, we have kind of tweaked it a little and we say to "rub some glitter on it". It seems to help a little. lol. Now some may think that telling your kid to "rub some dirt on it" is a bit callous or hard-hearted, especially when they are really injured.  But, if you truly  know my husband, than you know that he has a deep emotion and affection for his family, so it was never meant in that regard. Instead, what he was trying to teach them was how to use a little bit of humor to take their mind off an uncomfortable event or situation and learn how to control their emotions. My children seem to understand this concept, because as I sat and read Cenah's "secret" diary entry written on Saturday... in the invisible ink you can only see under a certain light (I'm not making this up!), it said "On Friday, my daddy's brain started bleeding and he has a bad headache.  But when I see him I will tell him to rub some dirt on it!"
     So, what is the point of you knowing this? Well, it goes along with my update. The past couple days have been rough. The type of brain hemorrhage that Chris suffered causes horrific headaches that can be somewhat decreased in severity but not totally relieved by pain meds. They have him on large doses of oral and intravenous pain medications and he is still miserable. He was not out of bed for two days as he declined walking or sitting in the chair when the therapists came. He wants to lay in bed with the room dark with as much quiet as possible. And this is normal for what is going on in his head. He wants a quick fix...anything to take away the severe pain and he gets frustrated being told this is "normal", because nothing feels normal about it to him.
     Today, they told me that I was going to have to start giving him a little tough love. That  he needed to be pushed a little. I have been a nurse for 23 years and I have no problem doing this to my patients....but your husband is a different story! It is hard when he is so miserable, I can't fix it, and I know that pushing him will potentially make the pain worse. But today, I put on a brave face and told him to RUB SOME DIRT ON IT! He has been up, walked to the bathroom, brushed his own teeth, walked in the hallway and sat up in the chair twice. And, while I know he doesn't feel good, I also know that this is the quickest way to get him back to normal, back home with us, and back to doing what he loves.

     Please keep praying for his recovery. I know there are many of you who would like to come visit, but please be patient. While his body looks normal and strong,  and he is stable and improving, his brain still needs a lot of quiet and rest in order for him to keep moving forward.  His team of physicians is still asking that we limit visitors to immediate family only. We truly cannot thank everyone enough for all the love you are showing our family and for all the thoughts and prayers that continually keep us #grotstrong.