Party in Elton’s room! Thanks to Emma, several friends from DePaul University visited Elton at RUSH this afternoon and evening. Emma you’ll recall is a young lady from Zimbabwe whom we befriended the day before Elton arrived. I still have a suspicion that she’s as much angelic as she is human. Not only does she speak Elton’s native tongue, Shona, she is a phenomenal source of encouragement.
After the DePaul posse left, we were joined by two of Emma’s girlfriends from Zimbabwe (Emma is on the right). Now we had three different people who could speak Shona with Elton. It was wonderful! Not only are these girls smart and articulate, they are quite funny. We laughed a lot!
The big lesson for Elton today was pain management. He has a much higher threshold of pain than most of us (certainly more than your typical male) and therefore is disinclined to ask for medication. Eventually, though he needs it. The nurse explained to him that it’s better to request help sooner than later.
Elton may be discharged tomorrow, or it could be on Monday. It all depends on how he’s feeling. There’s a good chance that it will be the latter.
Thanks to all of you who have mailed Elton a letter, card, or a gift. He received a box of art supplies today and is already enjoying them. It is remarkable to see how many people have reached out with genuine love and support.
