Back to Normal?

       At last Brent is beginning to feel much better as he sees the possibility of leaving the hospital very soon. I imagined this would make him extremely joyful, since after four months of being interned in a hospital room, one would do anything to get out and continue his life as before. The first time Brent began to feel he was able to do activities as usual was when Tina went out with him to Ben & Jerry’s and then to the movies. This was probably the moment up to now that Runyon will remember best and with more pleasure throughout his life. In his farewell party, Brent reflects upon the effect Tina had on his recovery: “And Tina. Tina, you did everything for me. You held my hand and you told me I was going to be all right and made me laugh and took me outside the hospital and made me feel normal” (p. 137). Brent did not feel normal while he was in Burn Care. The feeling that everyone is looking at you and everyone knows what you did makes it incredibly difficult to overcome the mistake. Only Tina took the initiative and was not afraid to take him out and make him feel like a teenager once again.

       I found it very interesting to see Brent’s frustration with the gifts his mother gave the hospital staff who had treated him. He explained: “It’s dumb. It’s so dumb, I can’t believe it. It doesn’t say what I wanted it to say. It doesn’t say, I could never have gotten better without you. It doesn’t say anything” (p. 138). I can relate to the feeling Brent was having, since there are times when there are not enough words or gifts to express your gratitude toward someone special. Additionally, anyone who tries to interpret that feeling and tries to help you gets on your nerves because you think they do not understand, and never will.

       After leaving the hospital, I expected Brent to go back to his normal life and periodically visit the rehab center. But, it shocked me to observe that the first thing Brent sees in the rehab center was the broken glasses on top of the huge stone wall. That is certainly not the image anyone should give a boy who has gone through so many struggles. That is a sign of danger and precaution. Is Brent going to be treated like a maniac? In my opinion, that is not the way to approach the problem and less when it is the day after leaving the hospital and at last being able to see the outside world. Is this the image the parents want Brent to have of them? That they dropped him off in such a horrible place? This will only make things worse and will probably make Brent go back into depression and despair.