A Christmas Miracle 2008

This is a picture of my dad when he was five. Sixty years later, we are lucky to still have him with us. September of this past year, dad suffered a massive stroke and was in the Neuro ICU for nearly a month. The hemorrhaging that occured in the brainstem should have caused his heart and lungs to stop functioning. During that time, he recieved multiple priesthood blessings -- and a miracle happened. Dad started breathing on his own again and began to turn a corner. (Obviously the Lord has more for James Perkins to do here on this earth.) Once Dad was released from ICU, he spent several more weeks in the hospital in acute rehab, suffering a few nasty falls as he worked around the clock with the PT and OT on his walking, talking, swallowing, etc.

Then a second miracle happened. Just this last week, the family got to have dad come home permanently...just in time for Christmas Eve. As kids, while growing up, Dad was always the example of dedication and hard work. That hasn't changed. By the time I left to come home to California, Dad was eating three (small) "solid" food meals a day and the nurse was going to look into removing his feeding tube. He can get in and out of his wheelchair by himself and is working on his speech and balance. (Ataxia, I have learned, plays nasty tricks on a person's perception and balance.) He will soon be going to the Balance Center downtown, where specialists will work with him and his physical therapists on this problem. While I was home, I took dad to his neuro appointment and he was just as lucid as ever -- recalling to his doctor the effects he was feeling from each of the (no kidding) 20 meds he is on. I read in an American Medical Journal that the amount of physical energy required of stroke victims during their recovery process can be compared to running an ultra-marathon
(100 miles)--over and over again.

Dad, I am so very proud of you. Once again, you have shown me the way to work, act and behave -- even under the most difficult of circumstances. I love you, and I love the Lord for the miracle of your recovery.