Steve (Gerry's brother) visits

 
 
From Steve Marinucci (Gerry's brother):
 
July 18 was a day I'd been looking forward to for some time. I'd wanted to come down to Southern California and see Gerry since he'd come out of the coma, but it was tough arranging time between work and all my other commitments.
 
But the weekend of July 18 turned out to be good. It originally was going to be part of a vacation, but the vacation was pushed back. But I'd decided to go to San Diego to be a part of a Beatle convention on that Saturday (I was a speaker), and decided to stay there through the afternoon, then head up north to Temecula and see Gina and Steve, then visit Gerry on Sunday before flying home.
 
When Sunday afternoon rolled around, I was a bit nervous, but excited. The last time I'd seen Gerry was in April. The only activity I'd seen was some very minimal eye movement. Many of the reports by Lori and Gina made me gasp as I read them. I was astonished he'd come so far so quickly.
 
Even more amazing was when I was told that Gerry had been informed "Steve" was coming to visit. He said, "My brother?" It was a good sign that he could remember this detail. (For those unaware, Gina's husband is also named Steve.)
 
The drive to the hospital was almost an hour, but it went quickly. Kindred Hospital is a small facility in Ontario. As we entered, I got more nervous.
 
Finally, we got to his room. There he was. Yes, he looked different ... thinner and without the beard he'd had for so long, but it was definitely Gerry. Gina walked in and is the custom with patients with brain trauma, he was introduced to all of us, including me. I said hello to him and his look showed he recognized me. We hugged and I felt and a strong feeling between us.
 
I was glad to see him moving again. His voice wasn't the old Gerry voice. It was gravelly, but it was definitely him. He seemed to be locked into the phrase, "It's only a matter of time," which indicated to me he has hope for the future. During our visit, which lasted about 1 1/2 hours, we talked, he sang hymns (and yes, he does remember the words!), and Lori did some mental exercises with him. In addition to his physical therapy, he has to do mental therapy and re-learn many of the things we take for granted. It's going to be a long road and he's going to need a lot of prayer and positive thoughts headed his way.
 
My plane would be departing from Ontario Airport in a couple of hours, so we had to leave. But seeing Gerry was quite an experience. I'll be seeing him again in a few weeks with Sue and Phil. I can't wait to see how much he'll have progressed.  
 
And I know he will.