The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Friday night we watched The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, a movie about a young french man who suffered a major stroke near the brain stem. After being in a coma for several days, he awoke. At that time they were able to assess the extent of the damage. His entire body was paralyzed except for one eye. The only things that weren’t paralyzed besides his eye, were his imagination and his memory. With these three things: his one good eye, his imagination and his memory and a staff of devoted women, he was able to dictate letter-by-letter, the words of a remarkable book. Ten days after the book was dictated and transcribed, he died.
The movie was very reminiscent of our experiences with Will. I really related to the doctors standing around commenting on the effects of the stroke upon the body; the tongue not being able to move, the throat not being able to swallow, the lips not being able to perform their proper function, the entire digestive system totally shut down, the subsequent need for a feeding tube to keep alive the passionate spirit of a vibrant young man, trapped in a body that was in lock-down mode.
As I watched the father cry over the plight of his son, my heart went out to him. His son was so much worse off than mine and the father was much older and less able to care for him. Friends took over the parent’s role including taking him on a pilgrimage to Lourdes to be blessed. As I heard them tell him of their hopes for him and of the many prayers that were ascending his behalf by people around the world, I remembered the prayers prayed in Will’s behalf. I thought of the healing blessing given to him in his apartment by his roommate before the ambulance came, of the prayers of the Methodist Minister at Riverside, the prayers offered in his behalf in temples throughout the world, his father’s healing blessings and the prayers we pray each night as a family.
Watching that movie was a chance for me to see how adversity breaks down barriers and builds up communities of faith and hope to sustain the suffering in their afflictions. Out of the prayers of the faithful in this young man’s behalf came a great book and movie. Out of the prayers of the faithful in Will’s behalf has come an even greater blessing, a remarkable healing. To all of you who have been and continue to be a part of the miracle we extend our heartfelt thanks.