the healing process.

howdy from texas!

first off, i thought that it should be known that this is being typed with two hands!  this might not seem remarkable, but let me tell you, when you've only been able to do everything with one hand for four weeks, it is incredibly liberating to be able to use the other one too.  bunches of people have asked me how things are going in texas, and how the healing is going, so i figured that an update might be nice.  this one won't have any interesting pictures, because i am in dallas.  haha there are interesting things here, but i reckon that y'all can visualize what i'm talking about.

so, texas.  i came back to the states two weeks ago last saturday, and it has been an interesting time back.  on the monday after i arrived back, i had my first visit with my orthopaedic surgeon here in rockwall, and from the x-rays he took he said that everything looked good in terms of the surgery that i had in lima, and at the time he advised me to keep the sling on pretty much all the time, and to limit movement as much as possible.  i had a follow-up visit two weeks later (which was this past monday), which i will get to later.  so, the first appointment was encouraging, but not very informative.  oh side note, first impressions upon coming back to america.  it smells so ridiculously clean here.  my point of entry back was miami dade airport, which isn't known as a particularly sterile place, but as soon as i got off the plane, there was this indescribable sense of cleanliness and sterility to the terminal.  it was very strange!  i reckon that it had been about six weeks since i had experience any air filtration, so that was a peculiar shock.  anyways, my first week back in the states was excellent, and mostly spent relaxing with my sweet mommy and daddy, american food (whoop tex-mex!), and all of the car magazines that had come to the house since i had been gone.  fortunately, the weather was pretty nice and warm when i got back, so i got to spend some time outside strolling around too.  it was definitely a little bizarre to be back.  you know how if you plan for a week-long trip, by the end of the week it feels like you've been in that place for a really long time?  i have learned how powerful expectations are to our brains, because i was in lima for exactly five and a half weeks, but it felt like i had hardly left the states, and i think that it's because i had my mind psyched up for a six month trip.  when we were preparing to go to lima, we worked intentionally on not making expectations about what our trip would be like, but we hardly realized that we had made one crucial expectation:  that we/i would be there for six full months!  anyways, all that to say that it really wasn't that weird to be back.

the next weekend, my best bud shelby anders came up from college station to visit me in rowlett, and we had a grand time hanging out, driving around dallas looking for places to live next fall, eating taco bell, and playing gran turismo 5.  i was hoping to come the college station the next weekend (this past weekend) to visit everyone, but since i am not supposed to drive yet, i was at the mercy of others for transportation.  my parents were going to bring me down for the weekend, but there turned out to be stuff at church they had to be around for, so shelby and i were talking, and since i didn't have anything going that week, we decided that it would be awesome if i just rode back to cstat with him, and chilled there for the week!  so i did.  and it was one of the best weeks of my life, full of good food and the best conversations ever.  i was so blessed to spend really extended amounts of time with people that i love in deep conversation, and it was cool water for my soul.  and being in college station with no class or anything hanging over your head is pretty sweet.  so that was an unexpected blessing, and it was so great to see everyone back home in aggieland.  i will be back for a few more weekends once i can drive again soon, and i am already looking forward to the one college station fav food that i missed, a good ole half-pound burger from koppe bridge.

on monday, i had my second visit with the doc, and i got a lot of interesting news.  first off, the x-rays showed that i am having great healing of the bone and is grows back together.  this was somewhat of a concern, considering the radiation that i had during my cancer treatments years ago.  radiation is known to brittle bones by frying the blood vessels that promote circulation, and because my bone appears to be healing at a normal rate, it would seem that i have good circulation to the break, so hallelujah it ought to heal nicely!  so that was good news.  but interestingly, i will not begin physical therapy for my shoulder and all for three more weeks.  but in the meantime, i am able to not wear my sling all the time, and i am allowed to do any movement of my arm that keeps my elbow below my shoulder, and with minimal weight lifting, like five pounds max.  so that's why i can now type with my left hand, sort of play guitar, and generally be a little more useful.  but i'm still hurting a little, especially as i am starting to move my gimpy shoulder around more and loosen it back up.  so the healing process is well underway :)  also interestingly, my return date of april 13th looks good, because that will be about 11 weeks from surgery, and the projected healing time of my injury and surgery is 10-12 weeks.  but, that time allows for recovery of full range of motion, such that i can do normal life activities with no worries.  but, it will be july or august before the bone itself will be fully healed, so for the last two and a half months that i'll be back in lima, i won't be doing any flag football or rock climbing or anything too intense, which is a little sad but probably a good thing :)  ill stay in one piece this time around i reckon!  i am looking forward to being able to use my arm with no worries in august though, lifting weights, playing basketball, and not skimboarding anymore haha.  that will be grand.  but, just being back in lima again, even with limited abilities, will be most wonderful.

i feel like i am naturally predisposed to being a positive person, so this whole episode hasn't been a huge hit to my happiness or anything like that, but there has definitely been some dealing with disappointment.  but, i am confident that i will look back on this time, and be thankful that i was here in texas rather than lima.  i don't know how yet, but i know that god makes all things work for the good.  i think that my week in college station played into that.  so as i'm here, god has already been showing me, and teaching me so much more about his nature and about how he works.  i still feel like im on serve abroad, on in texas i figure.  im speaking lots of spanish with people i meet here, reading my handy spanish bible (thanks mark!), and trying to keep an open eye for god's leadings here in rowlett.  all that, plus healing and eating great american food too :)  but oh man, what i would do for some good aji de gallina right about now!

anyways, thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers, and i'm so excited about getting to spend more time here in rowlett, but also getting to head back south to that country i love.  i covet your prayers for healing, and also for the three who haven't broken and all of the work in lima.  god is good!

¡chau!
the other kyle (kyle w)