This afternoon I went upstairs to have a 30 minutes quick nap. More than two hours later, someone woke me up to do something I just now can’t remember. You’d thought that this helped. I’d thought that this helped. But I’m still so tired that I can hardly keep my eyes open.

Since we came back, I wanted to put down some thoughts on the stay in Pforzheim, on the journey to Lourdes. I wanted to say how it was working with our new friend from ‘Hollywood’ interviewing people about their experience with and opinions about severe Acquired Brain Injury: a representative from the Neurological Alliance of Ireland, the CEO of Headway, the founders and owners of the therapy centre in Pforzheim, a consultant, a physio, and a team leader in Burgau, parents of four injured young people. Unfortunately, no-one from the NRH was available, nor from ABI Ireland – though ABI Ireland have said that fully support the An Saol Project and will be there for the movie an the launch on 18 June, and the NRH are still considering what they can do.

Here is something that you must do NOW (if you haven’t done so yet):

• Register for the movie and register for the launch right NOW (should you not have done so already)
• Ask your parents and children and friends to register today. Tomorrow, check with them whether they actually did register.

Remember – this launch will have to be our biggest show of strength and, at the same time, outrage about the way persons with a severe acquired brain injury are treated. We have to show our strength at the launch and our ability to deliver the three year pilot project demonstrating what neurological rehabilitation can achieve for #sABI survivors.

Today was the last day of many days of recording people who had to say something about how persons with a severe brain injury are being looked after and how they should be looked after. We interviewed those directly affected by sABI, families, those working in the voluntary sector, and those working in and researching neurological rehabilitation.

I have been completely exhausted by the whole exercise and am wondering how my (now:) friend filming the interviews is doing. My guess is that he is even more exhausted because for him, as all this is new to him: the topics, the people, the city, the institution and organisations, all of it.

Tomorrow afternoon the ‘film director from Hollywood’ (he doesn’t like me to introduce him like this) will be heading home. Imagine, this is the cousin of a friend who has just spent the best part of two weeks plus a long and costly flight from LA to Germany and Dublin in order to film material he will be using to produce (long and) short video clips to promote proper neuro rehabilitation for persons with a severe Acquired Brain Injury (#sABI) by An Saol, to fundraise for An Saol, and to promote the launch of the An Saol  Project. I, we, owe him an über-huge Thank you! Besos y abrazos.

Having just managed to get up this morning after a fantastic night out with KILA and Kaya in Vicar Street last night, Pádraig headed to his old school to say ‘thank you’ to the teachers, the students and the staff for their support, their help, their empathy and solidarity following his accident.

For me, it was one of the most moving and inspiring visits in a long time.

How would I have like to have gone to such a school!

Another night of complete exhaustion. Visit to and interview with Headway. Driving over to Pádraig’s former school. An Saol Board Meeting in the evening. I can’t keep my eye open and my hands freeze on the keyboard.

One of these days I will have slept enough to write something that makes a bit of sense.

Tonight is the night of “a picture says more than 100,000 words”.

Met someone working in the NRH who recognised Pádraig in Vicar Street. She came over to say ‘hello’ and ‘drop by to have a coffee one day’. How nice!

Good night!

Pádraig started to use his fancy new bed which had finally arrived a few days ago after a waiting time of untold length. It is really an incredible piece of ‘equipment’: so easy to use and so beneficial. Pádraig seems to like it too!

Today he stood in it having a drink of orange juice… holding his head up high without any support (except at the back). Gravity would have pushed it to the front but he held it up, for the first time! And what a first it was!

While he was standing he had an orange juice. Once I had put the cup in his hands, he moved it across the table and towards his chest, trying really hard to lift it up to his mouth. This last part didn’t work yet – but there is no doubt that it will some time soon.

Our friend working on An Saol the movie

My fancy new cycling “shorts”

A brilliant First: Pádraig holding his head up high!

Never thought this would fit:)

Earlier in the day, we went to see Ken, co-owner of the bike store Little Sports in Fairview who, together with Marin Cycles, are sponsoring the cycle to Cape Cod later in the month and a second cycle from Hollywood to Napa in October. Our camera man interviewed the owner of the shop who presented me with really ‘cool’ professional (and very tight fitting:) cycling shorts and ‘shirt’. There was a bit of a discussion whether this was going to fit me and, to be honest, I kept the shorts for a special fitting session:)

Thursday evening is a quiet time at Dublin airport. Hardly anyone to be seen when we left the plane and made our way to passport control. They just looked at us and asked “Everyone Irish?” I said “yes, just one is German” to which he answered “Not to worry, there’s always one” – and winked us through.

When we arrived home we saw that, finally, the standing bed.had arrived. I couldn’t belied my eyes. The therapist who checked the bed out this morning said to Pádraig that he was a trailblazer and that this bed was the first of many standing beds to come – and she was really really excited about the thought. This will really change a lot of people’s life. And she meant it.

Getting out of the train wasn’t easy this morning. Actually, getting all our stuff together to get out of the train was even more difficult. I was convinced that our bags, especially the small ones, had multiplied over night. There were just no more hooks anywhere to hang them, no more fingers to carry them.

Too many bags…

Arrival in Düsseldorf

The regional train to the Airport

On Pádraig’s first public transport trip

Yesterday evening was one of the nicest evenings for Pádraig, I think, when a couple of the young helpers spend a few hours with him talking and helping him with his food. Not everybody is religious, never mind up for a pilgrimage to Lourdes on a train with sick and injured people — they were and they really made such a difference not just to the trip but to how I see what’s going on in the world. Like Pádraig’s friends back home, these young people really make me feel good about things to come, because they are the future and they are going to make sure that it’s going to be good.

When we were standing on the platform and we said good-bye to all the people on the train, old and new friends, we really felt that this week was now over. It had been a very special week, pretty intense in many ways, loads of new unexpected and pleasant experiences, good conversations, tons of forward-looking positive thoughts.  This includes our really unexpected bath in Lourdes with one of our good friends, as well as the unexpected turning up of our broken bag for the third time (because some caring person had thought that we had ‘left it behind’ unintentionally – when we had tried to throw it out:).

We also realised that not only Pforzheim central rail station, but also its Dusseldorf sister station, don’t have trolleys anymore. We just about managed to carry everything from the platform where we had arrived to the platform from where the regional train was leaving for the airport. At the airport, we got a good day rate in a hotel and are just about getting ready to head for the check-in after a good rest.

There is a thoroughness and sense of duty here that doesn’t stop to amaze me. The ‘helpers’ had breakfast at 4 am this morning to allow them to have an early service at the Grotto before waking up those requiring their help at 5 am to have breakfast at 6.30 am followed by mass, shipping of all material and bags to the train, and making sure that all travellers would be on the train by 10:15 am. To everybody else, this would have been a full day’s work. For them it was just the start of the long journey back home.

A last look at the snow-capped Pyrenees

The Grotto this morning

The Basilica seen from the top floor of the Accueil

A last look back

Our ‘slow train’ at Lourdes’ TGV stop

Night on the train

Tonight, we’re on the train passing through France and Switzerland back to Germany, via Freiburg up along the Rhine Valley towards Cologne and Düsseldorf where we will catch a flight back home to Dublin tomorrow evening.

This time tomorrow night, we’ll be in Dublin after more than five weeks in Pforzheim and Lourdes. It’ll be different.

Yesterday was practice day, today we all did it: we went for the full bath in the holy water, the whole family (not all together:). We asked Pádraig a few times on different occasions before we brought him back to the ‘piscines’ and each time he said ‘yes’ he wanted to do this. It was freezing. And cleansing in a way. We were accompanied by one of our friends and carer who took a bath himself. I’d say its something that’ll stay in our memories for a good time.

Capturing the Irish in Lourdes

Get your photo on a candle with the Virgin

Pádraig holding his candle during last nights procession

Homeless in Lourdes at 6am this morning

Our group of injured and sick with their helpers

A really difficult thing today was a pretty long ceremony involving the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. It is supposed to give courage, hope and strength to get better – rather than falling into a state of despair, amongst other aspects of it.

However, the ‘tone’ of the ceremony and the focus on the suffering of the sick created an atmosphere where several sick and injured people just burst out into tears and couldn’t contain themselves any longer. Life is hard, difficult, and, at times, almost impossible to take. The sick and the injured become the victims that you have pity for. But how would anyone be able to live a life that the rest of the world looks down on in pity? Pity has a time and a place. And then everybody has to move on to the exciting, positive, and can-do outlook on life. Injury or not.

One really nice thing we did was having a walk along the river.

How different Lourdes looks and feels in nice, warm sunshine!

Today Pádraig met a few men from Armagh who did what you do a lot in Lourdes, they prayed. With him. In Irish.

The miracle of Lourdes for me, when I was here some decades (!) ago for the first time with my grandmother, was that you could have a bath in the holy water and didn’t have to dry yourself: the water just disappeared from my skin. Later I heard that this is something that is supposed to happen to everyone. Ok, it made it a bit less of a personal miracle, but I still thought that this was really something…

Last year, Pádraig didn’t go to the baths, the bath came to him. Two very strong gentlemen, with a bit of help by myself, put him on a stretcher, carried the stretcher to the bathroom, put the stretcher on top of a bathtub, and first washed Pádraig with ‘normal’ Lourdes water, before giving him a second ‘wash’ with the real thing: pretty cold spring water from the holy well. It was a bit scary and required a very special operation during which we managed not just to put the whole bathroom but the whole floor and corridor under water as we noticed too late that the water outlet in the floor of the bathroom was blocked…

Note: the pictures above are not ones I made.

This morning, Pádraig went to the ‘piscine’ and, with the help of almost a dozen very dedicated helpers from France, Italy, Germany, and Ireland took the ‘light’ version of the Lourdes baths. He didn’t quite go into the tub, but was covered in wet towels and water head to toe.

They prayed a Hail Mary with him and gave him time to pray for his special intentions. They prayed the Hail Mary in German, then in English and then came the highlight that made Pádraig really really happy. One of the men from Armagh offered to pray the Hail Mary with him in Irish.

Sé do bheatha, a Mhuire,
atá lán de ghrásta,
Tá an Tiarna leat.
Is beannaithe thú idir mná,
Agus is beannaithe toradh do bhroinne, Íosa.
A Naomh-Mhuire, a Mháthair Dé,
guigh orainn na peacaigh,
anois, agus ar uair ár mbáis.
Amen.

You should have seen the smile on his face. I don’t think he’ll ever forget the man from Armagh! Neither will I!