FanStory.com - Stay With Usby davisr (Rhonda)

First, let me apologize for one more story from Wayne's miraculous saga of recovery from a massive stroke, but something came up last night I feel needs sharing.

It was the end of the day, and Wayne and I were sitting on the side of the bed discussing his experiences. He survived something most never live to talk about, or if they do, are in various states of impairment.

We are aware of the magnitude of the gift he has been given, but cautiously aware that he still has some hurdles to overcome.

It was incredible to hear him talk about his emerging stroke symptoms and how he struggled to stop the tractor he was in. It's something few have the opportunity to share.

Both of my parents died from equivalent strokes. They never were able to talk about what happened to them, to say good-bye, I love you, or any of the other things we wished could have been said.

Wayne had his own personal experience with a family member and a debilitating stroke. His uncle, Jerry, spent 21-years in a nursing home unable to move his right side or even talk. He understood what people said and could respond with hand gestures, but was otherwise cut off from the farming community he once was a huge part of.

Wayne thought about all three of them as he sat in the tractor that morning and fought against his entire left side going weak to stop the machine from plunging into the stock tank ahead of him. He was determined that, one way or another, he wasn't going to end up like his uncle.

As Wayne talked to me last night, his head began to ache, something he struggles with especially when he's trying to make his brain work. He was going back through the day when he was whisked off by the helicopter to Dallas where they had an awesome stroke response team waiting on him.

He talked about how it felt to be lifted up out of the pasture. He could see most of what was going on outside.

He gazed around at everything below, including his cattle running for their lives from the whirling sounds of propellers. He watched familiar landscape zip by, noticed the path of the aircraft down I-45, a major highway leading to Baylor Scott and White Hospital, and a myriad of buildings he recognized from growing up close to Dallas.

Then, as we sat on the bed, Wayne grew anxious. His hand crept up to the right side of his head in a gesture that has become common for when he's in pain.

"I just wish I could remember them landing on the hospital roof and unloading me," he said. "That had to have been cool. I just remember them saying, Mr. Marusak, stay with us. Mr. Marusak, stay with us. They said it over and over, and then nothing. That's all I can remember."

His hand completely enclosed the right part of his head and eye. He paused, then said through tear-filled eyes, "I guess that was them taking me off the helicopter. I think I was dying."

For any of you out there who have been first responders or in the medical profession in any capacity, know that when you tell someone, Stay with us, you are heard.