Please Pray for Papa

Yesterday (Wednesday, October 4) around 7am, my Papa had a massive stroke. His wife heard him banging on the floor, he had to go to the bathroom. He told her to put him back in bed, which she refused. They took him to the local hospital where he seemed to improve. When I got there he was moving his right side well, speaking some and movingh is left leg and shoulder. The CAT scan showed nothing, they decided to send him to Beth Israel deaconess Hsopital in Boston. On the way in, he went downhill. My mom was the first one to get there, they had to intubate him because they were afraid he'd get pneumonia. Mom asked him if he wanted a tube to help him breath and he said yes, then she asked if he was going to behave and he said no. That's my papa. The finally found the stroke and my mom signed the paperwork for the surgery, Without the surgery he would regain nothing, and that would not make Papa happy. Julie and I got there with the twins shortly after mom signed the paperwork. My godfather (his mom is Papa's wife) and his wife, then finally a few hours later his wife, her daughter, my uncle, his wife, their daughter and her boyfriend. He was in surgery for a long time, they removed the clot. There was no bad bleeding after. His blood pressure went up, his heart rate down, they though he was bleeding, did another CAT scan which turned up nothing. We got to al go in and see him (2 at a time). Julie and I went in, told him we were there, we loved him and we wanted him to get better. He kept trying to get up and talk. Stubborn! I called this morning and he had an uneventful night. He is not moving his left side, but is moving his right side and following commands. Julie and Mom went to visit him this afternoon and he looked pretty good. He is still sedated. They are hoping to take the tube out either tonight or tomorrow and wake him up. This is something I wrote to put above his bed.


My name is Art

I was in the Navy
I rose quickly in rank
I didn't want to be chief
I kept doing fun (dumb) things
to get busted back down
I broke a plate glass window
at a Coca-Cola factory
In brazil
So I could have some coke
With my rum

I led a group of Sailors who were
literally
blind drunk
in Turkey
to the safety of the bus to base

I have four children
Allan and Donna
had muscular dystrophy
Allan died when he was 4
Donna when she was 18

Wendy is a nurse
Married to Doug
She has three children
Lisa, Julie and Katie

Keith is an electrician
married to Melisa
They have two children
Alan and Kristina

Joan is my wife
She has put up with me
for over 20 years
I love her

I have three step-children
I love as my own
I have known them most of their lives

Valerie works in an office
She has one son Evan

Bruce is married to Chris
they are moving to Virginia

Jackie is married to Joe
They have two children
Joe and Cindy

I have three great-grand children
Alison is 5
She lives in Salem
and just started Kindergarten
Her mom is Lisa

Lily and Mia are twins
they are 10 months old
They live in Bronx, NY
With their mom Julie and dad Peter
(who are Yankees fans)
(but we won't hold that against them)

I am a Free Mason
I have hundreds of brothers
don't try to stop them from visiting
They are loyal to me
as I am to them

I was a Shriner
I helped countless children
who needed our help
I donated blood to the Red Cross
for years
I have more gallon pins
than I can count

I am the man in that bed
I may look frail and weak
but I am healing

I am stubborn
I am tough
I don't give in

My family is part of me
they are stubborn and tough
They won't give up on me

You are my doctors and nurses
You will help me heal
Please don't give up on me.