A Picture Story...

On Friday, I go and speak to students at a school in Escondido. The teacher contacted me in June, a few months after the article came out. She said one of her students died from a head injury. Shortly after, her students began reading my story in class and she asked if I would be willing to go and speak to them, about my injury, and about my recovery. I said that I couldn't. I told her that I was overwhelmed and run-down. I also said I was nervous about speaking in an auditorium to the entire school. She told me that she understood.

Weeks passed and the teacher contacted me again. Her students had written letters and made cards. She came by my house and dropped them off. I couldn't get through more than ten of them before choking up.

The other day I received another email from the teacher, asking if I would be able to come and speak. This time, instead of packing all of the kids in an auditorium, she said that I could speak to 60 at a time in a classroom. I agreed.

This will be the first time that it will be only be me speaking. When I'm not writing, I try and plan out my presentation. It's hard. The emotions that accompany this injury are overwhelming. Having to explain the injury, the isolation from family, the temper, and impulsiveness, is difficult. And, looking completely normal while doing it makes it harder.

I thought about bringing in pictures to show the kids what it was like. What Aimee and my family saw in the hospital, what I looked like weeks and months after; a picture story of what my family and I went through. Here are just a few that I picked out.









That's as far as I could make it.