Update - 2/10/06
Oh give thanks to the Lord for He is good, and His mercy endures forever!
Yesterday I had the great privilege of seeing Matthew once again. His condition has changed so much since the last time I saw him on Jan. 31. As you know, he has been opening his eyes for a few days now. When I saw him, he was blinking his eyes and moving them, side to side and up and down, with some regularity. When I walked into Matthew's room, I noticed that he was moving his left thumb. Great signs to see!
After greeting and talking with Brenda, I went to the other side of Matthew's bed to pray some Psalms with him. As I was praying the Psalms, I also noticed that Matthew's eyes seemed to move a little bit more than they had when I first walked in. A few minutes later, I was holding his left hand, the one which he was moving before. The nurse told Brenda and me that he has been moving his thumb repetitively in an attempt, it seems, to remove the pulse-ox monitor. When I later asked Matthew to squeeze my fingers, he did tighten his grasp. I asked the nurse if she thought this was intentional on his part, and she said yes.
Another bit of great news about Matthew's condition is that he is being weaned off of the ventilator. On Wednesday, midday to afternoon, he had the surgery to put the feeding tube in, and after that they put him back on the ventilator for a couple of hours, after which time they took him off again to let him breathe on his own. Sometime in the middle of the night, they put him back on the ventilator, but only for a couple of hours. When I was there Wednesday, from about 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, he was breathing completely on his own, and had been doing so for those several hours since the middle of the night time on the ventilator.
Because of this great progress in breathing on his own, it is very likely that Matthew will be able to go to Rusk Center in Columbia for his rehabilitation (physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy). But as in all of these developments, we'll have to wait and see.
When I was at the hospital, I also got to see Andrew. He had a 12:00 noon appointment to see the doctor and, hopefully, get his neck brace off. Erich was teasingly telling him that he might have to wait another week, and Brenda told me that they might ask the doctor to play along and tell him that he had another week! :-) So, Andrew, did you get your brace off after all?
Once again, thank all of you for your prayers and for the great support. Brenda even told me the story of one employee (at a bank, I believe, but my memory may not be accurate) who was looking at an internet site--one for contributing to Matthew's medical expenses. When this employee's boss came by, he noticed his worker on the internet when he should not have been. When the employee told his boss about the young lad who was seriously hurt and in a coma from a car crash, his boss said, "Yeah, I heard about that one. Here, put me down for $20." Thanks to all for supporting the Kurz family--in prayers and with money--during this time.
Randy Asburry
Matthew's Godfather
Yesterday I had the great privilege of seeing Matthew once again. His condition has changed so much since the last time I saw him on Jan. 31. As you know, he has been opening his eyes for a few days now. When I saw him, he was blinking his eyes and moving them, side to side and up and down, with some regularity. When I walked into Matthew's room, I noticed that he was moving his left thumb. Great signs to see!
After greeting and talking with Brenda, I went to the other side of Matthew's bed to pray some Psalms with him. As I was praying the Psalms, I also noticed that Matthew's eyes seemed to move a little bit more than they had when I first walked in. A few minutes later, I was holding his left hand, the one which he was moving before. The nurse told Brenda and me that he has been moving his thumb repetitively in an attempt, it seems, to remove the pulse-ox monitor. When I later asked Matthew to squeeze my fingers, he did tighten his grasp. I asked the nurse if she thought this was intentional on his part, and she said yes.
Another bit of great news about Matthew's condition is that he is being weaned off of the ventilator. On Wednesday, midday to afternoon, he had the surgery to put the feeding tube in, and after that they put him back on the ventilator for a couple of hours, after which time they took him off again to let him breathe on his own. Sometime in the middle of the night, they put him back on the ventilator, but only for a couple of hours. When I was there Wednesday, from about 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, he was breathing completely on his own, and had been doing so for those several hours since the middle of the night time on the ventilator.
Because of this great progress in breathing on his own, it is very likely that Matthew will be able to go to Rusk Center in Columbia for his rehabilitation (physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy). But as in all of these developments, we'll have to wait and see.
When I was at the hospital, I also got to see Andrew. He had a 12:00 noon appointment to see the doctor and, hopefully, get his neck brace off. Erich was teasingly telling him that he might have to wait another week, and Brenda told me that they might ask the doctor to play along and tell him that he had another week! :-) So, Andrew, did you get your brace off after all?
Once again, thank all of you for your prayers and for the great support. Brenda even told me the story of one employee (at a bank, I believe, but my memory may not be accurate) who was looking at an internet site--one for contributing to Matthew's medical expenses. When this employee's boss came by, he noticed his worker on the internet when he should not have been. When the employee told his boss about the young lad who was seriously hurt and in a coma from a car crash, his boss said, "Yeah, I heard about that one. Here, put me down for $20." Thanks to all for supporting the Kurz family--in prayers and with money--during this time.
Randy Asburry
Matthew's Godfather
posted by Randy Asburry @ 11:02 AM
4 Comments:
At 1:32 PM,
Anonymous said…
good and heartfelt blessings to you Rev. Ashburry for this update of 2/10.....in Christ, mrs. lithebe
At 8:30 AM,
Anonymous said…
i didn't get my neckbrace off, and it stinks, oh well, the doctors said to come back next week for an MRI and maybe then i can finally get it off!
At 4:00 PM,
Anonymous said…
Matthew and Andrew, The members at Holy Cross in Kearney Nebr. continue to pray for your recovery. The power of prayer is awesome. Rita Kaul
At 5:01 AM,
Anonymous said…
Matthew and Andrew,
You probably don't remember me, but I used to baby sit you when you lived in Sterling, NE. I was a member of your Dad's congregation with my family, and guess what... your mother taught me how to sew!!! I couldn't believe the news that my mother told me about your accident. I've been praying for the both of you and it sounds like there have been a lot of others praying too! It sounds like you are both steadily improving and I'm so thankful to hear that! My husband and I will continue to keep you boys and your family in our thoughts and prayers, to a healthy recovery.
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