April 5, 2011 - An evening update

Jason had a pretty good day today. He had to go in for a procedure to make sure his bowels were where they were supposed to be, and they were - so now he can get started on clear liquids (again), and work his way up to solid foods (again). They have him on a new medication, to help with the nerve damage that happened, as a result of the blast and from the surgeries he has been going through. The good side of this new med is that it works really well, and the specific type pain Jason would feel is taken care of. The not so good side is that it can cause hallucinations and seriously messes with his vision. They initially started him off with 20cc's (I believe that's what the nurse told me) and Jason asked them to lower it, after he began to feel a bit strange. They lowered it to 10cc's and that no only took care of the pain but allowed Jason to feel a little more normal.

He spends a number of hours, when he is basically alone (the nurses are always there, or very close by) watching TV, and that gets old after a while. I spoke with his uncle Larry about this and he suggested that I get him some "books-on-tape" and a player (they're actually on CD now). Again, because of the meds his vision is not working correctly, so this seemed like a good idea. I found him a Steve King and a Michael Crichton set, as these are two of his favorite authors, and he even helped to set up the CD player. I think that made him feel better all by itself. Anyway, he has another option besides the TV, where he can just lay back and close his eyes and listen to a story.

Speaking of a story - We learned today that Jason will be receiving his Purple Heart on April 12th, and it is supposed to be presented by the Commandant of the Marines (a four star general). The ceremony will take place in his room, and right now we're planning on that being on the 5th floor. It is a fair sized room so it should hold all the people who will be there, and right now it looks like there are going to be a bunch. I'll make sure that plenty of pictures are taken so we can share them with everyone. I keep telling him he is becoming famous and I think it kind of humbles him, as he feels that he was just doing his "job" and he doesn't think of himself as any more special than any of the other Marines. I've also told him that people simply love him and feel he IS special and he is just going to have to get used to it.

Thank you, to all who continue to follow us on this journey as we appreciate all the support and prayers being sent our way. I'd like to ask for another prayer for Bridgette and the girls, as it looks like they have caught the flew or some other type bug. Because of it, they didn't get a chance to see Jason today. I held the phone so Bridgette could talk with him, and I think that made the both of them feel a little better. I'm going to sign off now - so stay tuned for the continuing saga.