Once we arrived home, it took some finagling to get dad into the house. I’m half his size, so relying on my shoulder and strength wasn’t going too well. Dad, finally, sat comfortably on the couch. We had three stories of stairs at that time, so dad spent most of his time in that lower level, family room. He had an exercise machine that moved his leg gently back and forth. We added degrees of movement as he was able. In out, in out went his leg. There was an amazing ice machine, also. I added cold water ,and dad wrapped the tubes around his knee. The ice sensation comforted dad’s knee and leg. It’s a very good invention. Otherwise, I would have had to invest in oodles of ice. It was hard watching my strong provider appear so weak. He’s not the type to sit around and bing watch television. As soon as he was given the go ahead for therapy, he was on top of it. He amazed the therapists with his determination to heal completely. Dad pushed to complete extra reps and extra time exercising his leg. While the doctor was hesitant that dad would ever run, again, dad pushed to prove him wrong. Within a year, dad ran/walked the Father’s Day 5K with us. It’s the first, and only, time I’ve beat dad in a race. I considered tripping him at the finish line, if he passed me. No one wants to be beat by a lame guy. I’m amazed and humbled by dad’s progress after knee surgery. David and Hannah are grateful that he was able to play with them, again.
