Day 171 | FEBRUARY 28, 2022

Good Evening Friends, today is day 171 of our new and amazing new life !

Today is a day that I have been dreaming of for a long time!

This morning I woke up a little earlier than usual , since I knew how busy I would be, I woke up at 6:20am and started my day.

I had the first appointment with the technician installing the stair lift, now I am praying that Charlie will be able to bend her knees enough to be able to ride the chair lift up the stairs, I am confident God will make it work, but is something that I didn’t think about until he asked me today! Right now Charlie can’t bend her knees FYI.

After rushing through work, I ate a delicious lunch and made my way to the hospital.

When I arrived the parking garage was full, so it took me a while until I found a parking spot.

I arrived at her room and Charlie was just finishing with her PT, it was her last session at the hospital, and the staff was just so excited for her, hugs and tears were the norm today:)

It has been a very emotional day, I will be honest, there have been times that I dreamed of the day Charlie would be discharged, and there were times early on on this journey that I was not sure if this day would come, but by God’s grace, we are here ! The day before her discharge day.

When I think of the morning of September 10, when my phone rang and at that second the life as we knew was gone, taken away with the fire, Only God will know how I felt at that very moment, for the first 72h, I had fear and terror, I didn’t know if my wife would survive, and I also felt despair, yes I could not imagine my life without Charlie , and once she started to show signs of improvement, the despair was replaced by hope and I was able to reconnect with God and faith started to give me the strength I needed to continue ahead, we had a lot ups and downs and fear continued to be present, the first sign of infection I was terrified, and with time I become less scared of infection, I would say that acquiring the knowledge of burns treatment, did help me to east off the fear in some instances, we had very scary moments, we also had incredible happy moments, as Charlie progressed, new challenges arises, frustration was a new presence and I had to fight so hard to advocate for her, and after a long scary journey I finally was able to started to feel grateful, and once gratitude became the main emotion, amazing things started to happen, God will reward the ones that keep the faith.

I know the miracle we have received and I am so grateful for the incredible love, support and generosity we have received and continue to receive, it still hard to believe that Charlie is leaving the hospital, 9 days shy of 6 months!

I was told that she would be at the hospital for a minimum of 12 months, and I will never forget that her survival rate was just 3%!

This experience has Changed Charlie’s Body, but also has changed me inside, my soul, heart and mind are very different now, you will be surprised by the incredible strength hidden inside of you , until you are present with adversity, I have been gifted with Compassion, and by being Vulnerable I have also been gifted with Gratitude.

One of many lessons I learned in this journey is that, everything comes at a price, you can’t be strong without overcoming pain, you can’t be grateful until you become vulnerable, you can’t become wise, without experiencing struggles, we must be willing to pay the price in order to evolve and become better humans.

Your generosity has taught me the power of compassion, and I will be forever grateful for it. Your prayers have given Charlie and me strength, your donations have given us security, you have no idea how important your role was in getting us here, thank you and May God bless you !

It is absolutely inspiring to see Charlie’s conversations with each nurse, NPs, PAs, she has touched so many people and they are genuinely moved by her, and some of them are becoming friends with Charlie, she will be dearly missed at VCU.

Tomorrow will be a day filled with emotions, and I can’t wait to see her leaving the hospital, yes she has one more stop before coming home, but she is one step closer now.

Charlie is ready for Rehabilitation and she has selected a special dress to leave the hospital and she is also doing her makeup, yes, using her left hand 🙂 , she wants to look her best.

We are forever grateful for the VCU burn unit and in particular Dr. Feldman and his team, we became like family, we cried, we laughed and argued at times, but at the end of the day, they helped to save my wife’s life and for that I am thankful!

She asked me to share the picture of her dress with you.

Thank you for your love and support!

May God Bless You!

André