Left Neglected

Jogie gets so jealous that I can read books because I want to rather than because my teachers are forcing me to. And that I have time to do this rather than worrying about how I will find time to study for the next ridiculously ridiculous test. The latest book I have read is Left Neglected by Lisa Genova.

This book details the experience of Sarah who suffers a traumatic brain injury which results in Left Neglect. In Sarah’s life she has every day overscheduled beyond what can reasonably be done by one person. She is very successful in her career and her company relies heavily on her. She has a family of three kids who need and crave her attention. She also has a husband with whom she has limited time to strengthen that relationship. If that wasn’t enough she has two mortgages and a boatload of debt from school. In her mind her stamp of success is in her busy lifestyle and her family’s high standard of living.

That changes when she tries to multitask while driving. Following her car accident her brain stops paying attention to anything on the left side. She is diagnosed with Left Neglect. She can not see someone standing on the left side of the room. She can not see the spoon on the left side of her bowl. Perhaps most devastating to her is that she can not read words on the left side of a page or sometimes even the left side of a word. Due to her traumatic brain injury she has to relearn simple tasks like walking and reading.

Sarah struggles with her new status as a disabled person. I work at a disability law firm helping people who become disabled get on Social Security Disability to help with medical coverage and living expenses. Because of my daily experiences at work I had in the back of my head the question of whether she would qualify for disability benefits. Sarah because of her young age, high education, and previous work as a skilled laborer had attributes that gave her a good chance of being able to return to the workforce.

Sarah through her rehabilitation had to define success differently. Success was no longer her busy lifestyle and her high standard of living. Success became finding the brownie on the left side of the plate, reading the entire newspaper with the exceptions of the boring parts. Success became getting her own pop from the fridge.

Sarah also had to realign her life values through her rehabilitation. Before her car accident Sarah valued her career and show of prosperity. Following her car accident she lost grasp on these values and was no longer able to define herself positively in these fields. Through her Left Neglect relationships especially with her family became what she valued the most. She got to know her kids and her mom in a way that she never had had time to do before.

Reading this book had me thinking most about whether I am living the life that I want to live. Do I feel successful in what I am spending my days doing? Am I spending my time on things or with the people that I value the most? Do I really need to rush through so much of my daily tasks? Can I save something for tomorrow?

Hungry for the Games

I am such a nerd! And I love it. I absolutely went to the midnight showing of The Hunger Games, and totally rocked the braid in my own style of Katniss. Though instead of her side French braid that went into one I did a waterfall that went into a five strand braid. On a side note I have become really nerdy about braiding my hair. I have been perfecting four and five strand braids as well as waterfall and dutch braids.

I loved watching The Hunger Games with friends. It was awesome and the anticipation was so exciting! My coworkers who have not read the book were super excited for me to see the movie. Daily I was reminded that it was coming out soon.

Jogie who was not available for the midnight showing took me later so we could watch it together. It was wonderful to be able to go to the movie with him. This was a movie that two viewings were wonderful as I could not absorb it all in one viewing.

Defying Gravity

On Thursday, March 1, 2012, Jogie and I went with a couple in our ward to see the Broadway musical Wicked. It was wonderful! Though we might not have chosen going to a Broadway musical for ourselves – we loved it and are so glad our friends invited us along. The group of us had reserved seats at the highest and furthest back point in the theater. Yet when we got the tickets we found that we were bumped up to somewhere around the vicinity of row twenty. Yep, row 20! After the performance we checked out where our seats originally were supposed to be, and it was a completely different view. Those seats were higher than the top of the curtain!

The performance was wonderful! The characters were so genuine and entertaining; especially Elphaba and Galinda. The scene changes were impeccably done. I do wish that there had been closed captioning so I could follow along with the words of the songs. Alas, the limitation of a live performance. The scene where Elphaba was flying as she sung Defying Gravity was amazing! It had so much energy. I tried really hard to see what was supporting her in the air and saw nothing. So, I can only conclude that she really was flying.

Following the performance we got to meet some of the cast. I certainly would not have recognized the girl who played Elphaba. In the performance I saw a tall skinny girl. Yet, the girl we met was short and had very poofy hair. Oh, and she did not look the least bit green.

We are so glad that we were able to go and experience Broadway live. Definitely worth it.

Hunger Games - Reality TV

I read the Hunger Games. I really enjoyed it. I had gotten it as an audio book to listen to as I drove to work. Yet I would eat my lunch in my car so I would catch a little bit more of the story; and then bring it into the house after work to listen to until Jogie would come home. Yes, I was hooked.

I was stunned how the murders were televised for entertainment to people. The idea of this is repulsive and barbaric. How can there be entertainment in watching someone die?

Yet Reality television is hugely popular. We have no qualms watching people succeed or fail in endeavors they take on. We watch people embarrass themselves as they sing and listeners grimace. We watch people fall in love; and have their hearts broken. We watch people try to take up a new talent and literally fall on their behind as they expose this new talent. And we watch people compete for titles that should be humiliating.  

We are entertained in watching people suffer death emotionally. When do we reach the point where we are willing to watch people suffer death physically? At what point do we lose our grasp of humanity and accept something like this? Hopefully, never.

Saguaro Lake

Just after Christmas Jogie and I went on a 90 minute cruise around Saguaro Lake. It was chilly in the shade; but the sun was warm. The water and the cliffs were beautiful. We had a good time and were glad to have the time off to spend together.

Our Christmas Letter

Dear Friends and Family –

As 2011 draws to a close we are reminded of how much Heavenly Father has blessed us by just reminding us that he loves us. Especially during this Holiday season we are especially conscious of the blessing that Heavenly Father allowed his son Jesus Christ to be born on Earth and to atone for our sins so we could return and live with Him again. We are so amazed when we think that Jesus volunteered to be our Savior. We are so blessed.

This year has been wonderfully busy. Jogie is currently in his second year at Midwestern University’s Podiatry Medical School. School has stretched and strengthened his ability to believe in himself and exercise faith that Heavenly Father will provide a way for us to succeed with school. Thank you everyone for your prayers and faith in our behalf; we have certainly needed that at times and have felt the blessings of your faith.

Amanda continues to work at the Slepian Law Office. Here she has focused on working up the evidence for cases that are pending for a hearing. Additionally, she has taken charge of cases at the Virtual Screening Unit. She has also been given the task of editing appeals from the attorneys.

 

Over the Fourth of July weekend we took a road trip to White Sands, New Mexico. Here we did some sledding and some backpacking. It was a really beautiful area. We were lucky enough to have front row seats to some stunning lightning.

Jogie wanted to catch a lizard of our own since we are in Phoenix and seem to see them all over. We caught Fluffy on our patio. Later we caught Squishy by our front door. We decided Gecko’s are really cute!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays Everyone!

Michael Vey the Prisoner of Cell 25

I read Michael Vey the Prisoner of Cell 25. It was a greatly entertaining read. Even better than the entertainment value was the themes and messages that were edifying. Michael is a fourteen year old boy with a power to transmit electricity from his body.

One evident theme was of love. Michael, the main character, loved his friends. He also had a lot of love for his mother. When his friend and his mom were in trouble he had to help despite the dangers. The bad guys in the book tried to exploit this love; but it did not work. In fact characters who Michael could have felt enmity towards became his friends and allies.

One character represented Satan in the story. He would tempt the main characters to do things that they knew were wrong. He would manipulate those around him to get them to do what he wanted because he did not have the ability to do these things himself. He would dote on them until they faltered and they were then in his power. “You know how it goes, Michael. The first time you resist. The second time you relent. The third time you volunteer. It’s that easy” (pg. 255). Just like in life there are those who live by what they know is right and those who become blinded by the lies they are told.

There is also a trio of characters that represent God. Their initials spell out I AM. Each has a different electrical power that is a godlike power. One could see and knew where others were. Another could heal physical pain through touching. And the third could emit light in a dark place. When Michael was in trouble and needed help this trio was able to provide comfort. The one who could see knew that Michael needed help and how to reach him. The one who could provide light shone a light in the dark place. This light also guided Michael to the one who could heal the physical pain. Michael in order to feel the comfort from the trio had to reach out for it. The trio wanted to help Michael. God wants to help us as well. He wants to comfort and sustain us. In order for us to receive this comfort we need to reach out for it.