My Dad's Accident

Thank you to all of our friends and family who have been praying for my dad's speedy recovery. I have to tell you that, despite what he looks like, he's doing so well. Really, he is. It is an amazing miracle of God that Dad had only trauma to his face. It could have been so, so much worse.

Sunday evening, after a day of playing golf and having dinner, my dad was driving down Hwy. 108 (Huckabay highway, for those of you who know the area; he was about 5 miles outside of town) after dark in his Lincoln Town Car. Thank goodness Dad's a huge man that wants/needs a huge car!!

Dad said he didn't see the horse until he was right on it. The horse was dark in color, standing directly in Dad's lane, rear-end toward my dad. Dad didn't hit the horse head-on because the horse was standing slightly at an angle on Dad's front left. We think that's why the airbag didn't deploy. We are not sure what created all the trauma on Dad's face, but I personally don't think it was the steering wheel. It was in pristine condition in the photos Angie got of the car. The driver's side of the roof of Dad's car is crushed in and I wonder if Dad's head wasn't in a position of looking up about the time the horse came down on that area. We just don't know. Wish I had a connection with an accident reconstruction person!

We don't know how long it was before someone found Dad or where his car was. I believe for some reason (been told maybe? Not sure) that Dad's car stayed on the road. The DPS officer who worked the scene is a friend of mine from my days at the Holiday Inn, where they all drink coffee, but because he was on nights, so I wasn't able to touch base with him. I hope to do so at some point.

They took Dad to the S'ville hospital where they got Dad stable, then put him on an ambulance (not Care-Flight, as the S'ville paper reported. DUH!!!) to Harris Methodist-FW where he proceeded to get sick due to motion sickness. Dad said he was glad he was transported via an ambulance, because he knew he wasn't that bad off. A girl who was a client of Dad's many years ago sat with him at the hospital in S'ville and held his hand until he left. She had just been getting off work when they brought him in and, since no one was with him, said she couldn't leave him. Dad said he remembers her holding his hand really, really tight. I love a small town! Where else does stuff like that happen? She also called the hospital in FW to check on Dad.

Dad's accident happened almost a full 13 hours before any of his family knew. Evidently someone at the hospital finally said "Hmmmm, wonder if this guy has any family?" Why no one in S'ville did that, I'll never know. Anyhow, Dad was able to get the nurse Amy's phone number (older sister for those of you who don't know) in Houston and his brother's number in Weatherford. Once Amy got the call, she had Katie go up. All we knew was that he was in the trauma ICU and unable to speak. Katie had no idea what she was walking into when she got there, poor thing. And of course, that hosptial is a compound so it was hard to know where to go.

She and Amy both thought Dad was unrecognizable. For me, his hair gave him away! And believe me, I had prepared for the worst. His face was (and still is) extremely swollen, with a huge gash on his right cheek. His eyes are black, his lips were busted up and repaired, lots of dried blood, etc. However, when you consider how lucky he is.... We've all heard of people who died hitting deer, much less a full-grown, ropin' horse. Since Dad's accident, we've heard horror stories about decapations, loss of life, etc. Dad's own doctor said this is an unusual case because with this much head trauma, usually there's also a broken neck or some kind of chest trauma. Dad had NONE of that. Truly, that's a miracle. When I think of what I saw when I worked for State Farm, I cringe knowing how easily things could have gone the other way.

Dad was able to go home from the hospital today. The doctor (who all of us daughters like, despite the fact he's a t-sip!) said that, because the only reason they were waiting for surgery was Dad's swelling, there was no reason for him to stay at the hospital. Yesterday they started Dad on pain pills as opposed to morphine, and Dad's pain stayed under control. Honestly, his pain hasn't been an issue. He's uncomfortable, he has pain, but he's not in horrible pain. They've got some great medicines out there!

So, after I left DFW today, Amy was able to take Dad home until next Wednesday, when he'll return for surgery. Amy is staying for a few days, then Katie will come and take over, with Angie being there off and on. They'll all be there for the surgery. Please pray for them. My dad isn't the best patient and isn't very good at patience! But I told him to "Be reasonable" which is advice he has told me in the past, and I know he's going to do his best.

After surgery, the surgeon told the sisters that Dad will be able to take care of himself, for the most part. His jaw will be wired shut and his diet will be liquids, but beyond that, he's really healthy. And really blessed. And we know that God really isn't done with him yet!

He's requested Brad Pitt's or Tom Cruise's face. I'll keep you posted on that!