Just back from my daily visit with the formerly ubiquitous man about town Ken Ruben, three weeks into a paralyzing stroke.
Improvement from his devastating felling 3½ weeks ago remains barely discernible.
Friends daily encourage him to fight back, but their wishes are experiencing frustrating difficulties connecting with his battered will.
Mr. Ruben’s cavernously narrowed speaking ability and his paralysis on one side have caged him into a lonely universe that would depress an optimist, which he never has been.
Three impassioned loves have underpinned his 72 adventurous years on this earth – in no particular order, (a) trains and buses, their history and contemporary rideability, (b) food and (c) his numerous cell phones.
His first love is on hold for the foreseeable future.
At the Country Villa Mar Vista, where he has been in residence since last week, nurses want him to exercise – his 159th most favorite activity, just after being bopped on the schnozzola.
After bare minutes, he is eager to return to his bed and await the next meal.
Given his impaired speaking ability, cell phones largely are in the past tense, though he does connect daily with two friends. The only communication is on their end.
Even though Mr. Ruben has sailed solo by marital standards, his loyal friends refuse to be discouraged. For 21 days, since word began spreading, pals have been cheerleading him back to his old self…a vast journey he has not yet undertaken.
