In No Partiular Order...

I'm back from Utah with random thoughts (in no particular order).

(I just hit publish post and HOLY FREAKIN' COW, this is LONG! What can I say...it's a whole five days worth of thoughts. And a lot of thinking went on those 5 days apparently. Read it or don't. It's up to you.)

• Highlight of the trip: Lisa. She's fantastic. She loves my brother so much. And it's easy to see why he loves her. I do too. Really.
  
• No matter how great everyone tells you someone in a coma looks, he's still in a coma. I kept hearing...Mike looks so great, he's healing well, he looks like Mike again. The thing is, they saw him right after the accident and since he looked so much better than that, that's what they were seeing. I was ill prepared. It was a bit of a shock. I was expecting to see regular old Mike lying in a bed. Not so. After spending a few days there, I could see what they meant. You get used to what he looks like and his surface injuries did get better daily. By the end it was me saying...Mike looks so great, he's healing well, he looks like Mike again. But if you saw him, you'd probably be surprised, too.
• Landing in Salt Lake City is like landing on a whole different universe (or university as Reid would say). Everyone looks and talks and dresses exactly the same. You know immediately you're in Utah. I forgot what Utah is like.
• You don't realize quite how big Mike is until you see him in a hospital bed. He takes up the WHOLE THING.
  
• My cousin, Ryanne, writes to Mike every single day. She sends emails directly to the hospital for him. She's a good six years younger...it's not like they grew up best pals or anything. She writes the BEST letters. (Sorry Ryanne...I know they were private letters for Mike, but someone had to read them to him.) It was really awesome. I started looking forward to her letters.
  
• On a similar note, lots of people have done lots of really nice things for everyone in my family. Things I never would have thought of. It has inspired me for when others are going through trials. Compassion is not a strength of mine. I want to change that.
  
• I read a book on the airplane. That was the first time I've read a book that wasn't assigned by a teacher or professor in at least 15 years. I picked up an easy read, but I found myself enjoying it. I was so enthralled that I didn't mingle with any passengers my entire way to Utah. And I LOVE meeting strangers on airplanes. I only had like 50 pages left for my entire flight home. I was quite sad when I was finished. But I did sit next to a six foot something tall woman who had a daughter who played baritone in the "Best Damn Band in the Land." She was super chatty and that got me through the rest of the way home.
  
• I expected my entire trip to be a somber one, but quickly discovered that a little light-heartedness at times is necessary. Lisa, for example, was stroking Mike's face and he jerked his head. (He gets agitated when his face is messed with...it's the only response we really see.) Lisa came back with...If you didn't want me to touch your face, why didn't you just say so. Even doctors have made similar comments. It's nice to lighten the mood sometimes.
  
• Spencer and I don't ever travel separately. I missed him a lot. Way more than I expected to. We stayed up until 2am after I got home even though we were both thoroughly exhausted. I have to say though, it was nice to have five days off of mom duty.
  
• Fry sauce is only good in Utah.
• On the plane from Chicago to Salt Lake, there was this short, plump flight attendant in her 60's with fiery red hair. She sang songs in the mic and modeled the life vest. She was awesome.
  
• There is a short church service held in the hospital chapel on Sunday mornings. It's filled with patients, family members, doctors, cafeteria workers, you name it. It was great. I heard this was Jeff's response to it: "Dear President Monson, 30 minute church. Love, Jeffery." Also, LDS church members are called to be service workers to go around to all the rooms to anyone interested in taking the sacrament. It's very sweet. And for anyone who remembers the Perkins from Corona...they were there doing that very thing.
  
• My moms aunt and uncle live real close to the hospital. I went to their house for a delicious dinner one night. Why can't I make a better effort to have relationships with extended family? I am related to some pretty amazing people. I got to visit briefly with cousins (of some sort) and really wished I knew them better. I loved them instantly.
  
• I like me a good In-N-Out Burger, but to wait 20 cars in line for the drive through? Not worth it. Good thing Mike isn't reading this.
• It is really hard to talk to someone in a coma. I hear it's good for them and I went expecting to do it. It is tough. Especially when other people are around. It makes me really self-conscious. I had a hard time thinking of what to say. I did read to him a few times. I was better about it when I was alone, but still paranoid that a nurse would come in. Why is that so hard for me? Some people are really good at it, like Lisa, for instance.
• I stayed with my in-laws. My mother-in-law has the best family history stories. She lights up when she tells them. I could listen to her forever.
  
• Mike had all kinds of injuries from the accident, but the minor things like bruises and scabs and black toenails totally made me cringe. That's nothing compared to his other wounds, but it's all I could relate to. I can't imagine how bad the rest of it feels.
• Jeff, Mom and I saw the funniest sign ever for a woman's bathroom. Jeff was the only one equipped to take a picture. You'll have to hunt him down for the evidence.
  
• We've all heard that music is good for people in a coma. I heard that long before it was my brother in a coma. So we played music. Everyone who came in seemed surprised by it. Have none of the other trauma patients ever done that?
• Two police officers came and escorted a woman out of the ICU waiting room on Sunday morning. Her son was in the ICU. I'm dying to know what happened.
• On the subject of Police Officers...one showed up to our house on Saturday. Two social workers and one police officer and we're now in the clear. The officer deemed the alleged abuse a false accusation. Parker can now resume jumping off the top bunk of the bed.
  

Overall, the trip was a good one. I got to spend time with Mom and Jeff for a couple days before they left back to Arizona. And though seeing Mike was tough, it has really helped my mind rest a little. I have a better feel for the situation. Please continue to keep Mike in your prayers. It's not over yet.


POST EDIT: You can send emails to Mike HERE. Remember his full name is Kevin Michael Benson.