Tuesday, October 12, 2004
FAREWELL TO FITZ....SEPTEMBER 1980
Our flight back was pretty much routine. We made the usual stops to pick up and drop off patients at the different military sites. When we landed in Fort Leonard Wood, John and uncle Tom were there to meet us. They helped us with the baggage and soon we were on the ride back to Willow Springs. Uncle Tom and aunt Inabelle had driven from Virginia to visit mom and hopefully to see us if we made it home in time. They were on their usual trek back to Blair for the family reunion.
When we unloaded our luggage, we went up to mom’s….she had a wonderful supper waiting and it was a treat to sit down to one of her home cooked meals. One of mom’s talent’s was her cooking……she could make anything taste like a feast or banquet. George Jr. had driven down to see us and we had a nice family reunion of our own that evening.
We had a few days of visiting before George Jr. had to go back to Shawnee; John rode on the back of a friend’s motorcycle all the way back to New Orleans and mom and the Powell’s left for Nebraska. Finally, after all those weeks we were alone. It had been a long, long road to travel back but we were home!!
Life took on some regularity for us. I worked my three days a week and Warren found jobs to do at home. He got around quite well on his crutches and had switched to the forearm type rather than the underarm type. He had extremely strong upper body strength as well as the muscles in his leg. It was hard as a rock from the duty of having to work for two. He didn’t show the ravages of his long ordeal and he was feeling great. He continually pushed himself to do more.
We continued with his therapy at L. Wood. We walked in one day and there was Pam Prentice….our PT girl from Fitzsimmons. She was smiling and said her husband was transferred to “Fort Lost-In-The-Woods” so she put in to come there too. From now on she would be his PT girl again. She was very happy with the way Warren had progressed and continued to push his limits.
Mom called from Blair to tell us that she and her three sisters and uncle Tom were on their way to Colorado to see some sights. We were glad they were able to get away and enjoy some time together. They were all retired so they could travel and enjoy the company as well as the scenery. The Stricklett’s were a close family unit and often took trips together. It would be some time before mom came home.
Warren was notified that he was to fly back to Fitzsimmon’s on September 17th to get his permanent prosthesis. It was ready and he would need a few days there to get used to it, then he would fly home. I didn’t go this time because he was doing great and able to handle whatever came up. Had I not been working I would have but I knew he was fully capable now and I didn’t want to ask for more time off since the Patrol had been so good to me. He agreed……
He was home in a few days and after exercising and walking with the prosthesis it continued to be more of a problem than a solution. It was like dragging an anchor and didn’t help with his walking. When we were in Fitz, there was a young man who lost a leg in a motorcycle accident, while on leave from the military. His name was Gravell. He would take unbelievable strides with his crutches and you could hear him coming down the hall….tap, thunk…tap, thunk, tap, thunk…..we used to stand at our door and watch him come and go like a gazelle.
Warren said, “I want to be able to get around on my crutches like Gravelle does.” He worked and practiced until he could and was as graceful. He could sit, get up out of a chair, walk……with the greatest of ease. Because the bone was really longer than the flesh on his stump the prosthesis rubbed the scar tissue raw and it would bleed. After several days of that and Warren’s frustration mounting….I said, “Take it off. It’s worse now than when you were on crutches. You don’t want more surgery and this is never going to toughen up because it’s scar tissue. You don’t have to have two legs to impress me and everyone knows the leg is gone anyway….we don’t need this to deal with.” He took it off and we put it in the garage……….our journey was over.
I spent 100-days even, in the hospitals with Warren. Those days were some of the most gratifying of my life. Taking care of my own husband to relieve the orderlies….going for meds, linens or to report someone needing help down the hall……the many visits, jokes, singing and laughter in our rooms as the young guys flocked in to visit with us……one of the medics playing his guitar after he got off duty…..the heartfelt goodbyes, knowing we would probably not be seeing one another again… it would be impossible to forget the camaraderie, devotion to duty or the friendships made.
People might have looked at us and felt pity because of the missing leg. They would be wrong. We didn’t lose anything……..we found a lot!!!
Until tomorrow,
Essentially Esther
When we unloaded our luggage, we went up to mom’s….she had a wonderful supper waiting and it was a treat to sit down to one of her home cooked meals. One of mom’s talent’s was her cooking……she could make anything taste like a feast or banquet. George Jr. had driven down to see us and we had a nice family reunion of our own that evening.
We had a few days of visiting before George Jr. had to go back to Shawnee; John rode on the back of a friend’s motorcycle all the way back to New Orleans and mom and the Powell’s left for Nebraska. Finally, after all those weeks we were alone. It had been a long, long road to travel back but we were home!!
Life took on some regularity for us. I worked my three days a week and Warren found jobs to do at home. He got around quite well on his crutches and had switched to the forearm type rather than the underarm type. He had extremely strong upper body strength as well as the muscles in his leg. It was hard as a rock from the duty of having to work for two. He didn’t show the ravages of his long ordeal and he was feeling great. He continually pushed himself to do more.
We continued with his therapy at L. Wood. We walked in one day and there was Pam Prentice….our PT girl from Fitzsimmons. She was smiling and said her husband was transferred to “Fort Lost-In-The-Woods” so she put in to come there too. From now on she would be his PT girl again. She was very happy with the way Warren had progressed and continued to push his limits.
Mom called from Blair to tell us that she and her three sisters and uncle Tom were on their way to Colorado to see some sights. We were glad they were able to get away and enjoy some time together. They were all retired so they could travel and enjoy the company as well as the scenery. The Stricklett’s were a close family unit and often took trips together. It would be some time before mom came home.
Warren was notified that he was to fly back to Fitzsimmon’s on September 17th to get his permanent prosthesis. It was ready and he would need a few days there to get used to it, then he would fly home. I didn’t go this time because he was doing great and able to handle whatever came up. Had I not been working I would have but I knew he was fully capable now and I didn’t want to ask for more time off since the Patrol had been so good to me. He agreed……
He was home in a few days and after exercising and walking with the prosthesis it continued to be more of a problem than a solution. It was like dragging an anchor and didn’t help with his walking. When we were in Fitz, there was a young man who lost a leg in a motorcycle accident, while on leave from the military. His name was Gravell. He would take unbelievable strides with his crutches and you could hear him coming down the hall….tap, thunk…tap, thunk, tap, thunk…..we used to stand at our door and watch him come and go like a gazelle.
Warren said, “I want to be able to get around on my crutches like Gravelle does.” He worked and practiced until he could and was as graceful. He could sit, get up out of a chair, walk……with the greatest of ease. Because the bone was really longer than the flesh on his stump the prosthesis rubbed the scar tissue raw and it would bleed. After several days of that and Warren’s frustration mounting….I said, “Take it off. It’s worse now than when you were on crutches. You don’t want more surgery and this is never going to toughen up because it’s scar tissue. You don’t have to have two legs to impress me and everyone knows the leg is gone anyway….we don’t need this to deal with.” He took it off and we put it in the garage……….our journey was over.
I spent 100-days even, in the hospitals with Warren. Those days were some of the most gratifying of my life. Taking care of my own husband to relieve the orderlies….going for meds, linens or to report someone needing help down the hall……the many visits, jokes, singing and laughter in our rooms as the young guys flocked in to visit with us……one of the medics playing his guitar after he got off duty…..the heartfelt goodbyes, knowing we would probably not be seeing one another again… it would be impossible to forget the camaraderie, devotion to duty or the friendships made.
People might have looked at us and felt pity because of the missing leg. They would be wrong. We didn’t lose anything……..we found a lot!!!
Until tomorrow,
Essentially Esther
