Josh and the motorbike accident

 

Josh was in a motorcycle accident this past weekend. Here is an update on how he is doing as well as the full story of what happened, as I have been told….

The TransAmazon  

 

On Saturday morning Josh left with Allison to do a weekend of church meetings and discipleship in the community of Surubim, a ranching and farming community in the bush about 4 hours outside of Altamira. While traveling by motorcycle on the TransAmazon highway, a large dog ran suddenly into the path of Josh’s motorcycle, pitching Josh’s body onto the hard clay and rock road surface. He can’t remember how he landed or really much at all after having the dreadful awareness of the dog. He never lost consciousness and when Allison found him he was able to talk and even sit up. They waited while 2 trucks sped past them. Allison explained that travelers on the TransAmazon are leery of stopping or even slowing down for fear of robbery. An injured duo would make a fabulous ruse, I suppose. So, Josh rode on the back of Allison’s motorcycle and they headed back towards Altamira. When they arrived at the river crossing, they had to wait for a car going their direction to act as an ambulance to take Josh into Altamira. The ferry came and went twice, until finally a van carrying workers from a local electric company arrived and transported Josh to the hospital.

Josh lacked mobility of his left arm and had a deformity on his shoulder blade so an x-ray was ordered that evidenced a scapula fracture. He also had a decent gash under his chin that needed stitches. That was about the time that I made it to the hospital. I watched as the technician cleaned the wound and cut out the loose tissue, and then remembering that Josh also broke at least 4 teeth, the technician probed his finger in further to feel Josh’s lower jaw bone. It wasn’t right, so back to radiology we went. The x-ray technician had actually left the building already so when he was called back for us, he gruffly asked. “What? Did you fall?” Essentially, the  jaw x-ray has been inconclusive, but clinically Josh can talk, bite down, and has some mobility and strength so right now we are waiting for the swelling to go down and then reevaluate. Despite that much of his pain was (and still is) in his left leg, all the x-rays of his leg came back clean. 

Josh when he first arrived home.
He had to make his own sling out of the long-sleeve tee he was wearing.

So I took him home. And it was a crazy night. First of all, the whole time at the hospital, no one listened to his lungs; no one took a pulse or questioned him about abdominal pain. All of those things being standard of care for almost any accident, but especially when an accident occurs of such force that could break the scapula. They let us go home without antibiotics, pain meds or even any advice on what to expect the coming days. They told me to see an Orthopedic doctor and an oral surgeon, and that was about it. It didn’t scare me, because honestly I wanted him at home where I could make the decisions and where he would be comfortable. The hospital we were at is horribly uncomfortable, at one point all I wanted was a towel to drape over Josh’s shoulder but I knew that would be a ridiculous request. Since he is at home, I can go to the pharmacy myself and get the best meds available, I could have our MD neighbor up the hill give me a second opinion and I called Tim in Porto de Moz and emailed Josh’s childhood friend Dan (an ortho doc) in Africa to give me advice. Later today I ached for the many people who don’t have those options, who can’t go home to a comfortable bed with a mountain of pillows and do not have support people who can just drop whatever they are doing (I was at a women’s retreat) and they don’t have any money to buy medication or see a specialist. And I was flooded with emotion, utterly grateful to have my husband alive (I kissed his helmet. And on a side note I have to wait 15 days to kiss his mouth.), thankful to be able to care for Josh and yet troubled for others who find themselves in Josh’s same predicament without the same care options.

It is kinda hard to see what God is up to here. Something, certainly. Josh and I had been planning this weekend for a while. The women’s retreat was actually a powerful ministry put on by our church called Encontro, which translates to “Encounter.”  Participants are given an entire weekend to search for God and His calling on their lives. I have been desiring to go for at least a year and the dates never worked out until this month, which I thought to be Divinely remarkable timing since Josh and I are using this month to pray specifically about our future with a new base. I was there 17 hours when Steve and Patty arrived to tell me about the accident and take me to the hospital. Those 17 hours were powerful and I learned so much about myself and God, strangely though, nothing to do with the new base. I have yet to share with Josh because, as you would imagine, other details have center stage.

So that is the update. Josh spends most his time in bed, self-medicating with ESPN.COM when it streams well. He can ambulate to the bathroom and sit on a chair in the shower. He drinks smoothies and takes codeine.That is about it. I find it humorous that he is stuck at home again (remember Dengue December?). My idea, which I am positive is correct, is that God is telling him to stay home more. Just kidding about that; sort of. But seriously, I admit I am having some significant emotions and a fair amount of deep reflections, however fragmented they are at the moment. I just can’t seem to put them into words. Give me some time. And Josh will give you his take too. Later though. It was rather bizarre watching Josh contort his body and use one hand to type a 2 line update on Facebook.

Thank you all for your prayers. Thanks for the prayers before his weekend even began and for the prayers after his accident. We are so humbled to know so many of you bring us before God. And the emails and Facebook messages are truly encouraging. We thank God for all of you.