Pratt's Experience with Mike

This is an e-mail that Pratt wrote about an experience he had last Friday...


I wanted to take a minute and share with you a unique experience I had this past Friday, July 17th 2009. I don’t know if I can convey in words the emotions that where experienced, but I will do my best.

Tuesday night my great friend and neighbor, Gerrit Albert approached me about taking an old friend of ours from church to hit golf balls on Friday morning. I was very hesitant for 2 reasons, one is that I had promised my wife to spend my day off with the family but I knew she would be ok with this when she heard who I was taking. Which leads into the second reason for my apprehension, it was US Marine Fighter Pilot Capt. Mike Holmes. Mike was injured in a freak snowboarding accident in Utah while out there training about 18 months ago. He suffered a severe brain trauma, was in a comma for months and now is located in FL going through rehab. I don’t know why I was hesitant to do this, but it took me a day of thinking about it and my wife telling me I need to do this, until I was able to give Gerrit the yes.

We decided to take Mike to the Berkeley Hall learning center as that has the closest parking to any practice range around and we would be pushing Mike in a wheelchair. My stomach was in knots for the two days leading up to this, why I didn’t know but would find out soon enough.

Friday morning I met Gerrit at his office and we waited for Mike and his wife Meredith to show up and follow us back into Berkeley Hall. We all arrive at the practice facility, Gerrit and I get out of the car and we stand there uncomfortably, not knowing the words to speak or how to offer help as Meredith pulls the wheelchair from the car and sets it up for Mike. I start to watch this “dance” unfold, as Meredith sets the chair for Mike to pull himself out of the car, she leaning in to give a supportive foundation. I realize right then that Gerrit and I are the only two uncomfortable ones there. The “dance” that Mike and Meredith were performing was now their life and it is done over and over everyday for every task. There was no bitterness or anger from Mike about having to trade the cockpit of his fighter jet for a wheelchair. No sadness or frustration from Meredith that she now was the caregiver for her husband and possible could be for the rest of his life. They were simply just happy, happy to be together, happy to be going to hit balls, happy to see us even though due to Mike’s injury he didn’t remember me. And even in that moment when Meredith asked if he remembered me and he said no, I froze and didn’t know what to say. Meredith just looked at me, smiled, and shrugged as if to say “don’t take it personally, its normal.” She then proceeded to tell a funny story about the last time Mike and I were together at a Christmas party and Mike was wearing a hideous Christmas sweater. This was the norm for her, helping Mike recall his past and controlling the environment around them.

We stroll up to the range and find a spot under the covered hitting bay, out on the grass. I stand there for what seemed like minutes, but most likely was a few seconds wondering what to do next. As I assess the situation I see a bucket of balls, Gerrit’s golf bag and Mike sitting in a wheelchair, the question of what do I do now is screaming in my brain. Luckily Gerrit pipes up and ask the question. We get Mike lined up in his chair and give him the driver. He is gripping it with one hand, the right. The thought of where should we tee it up and how is he going to do this are racing through my mind, but before I could come up with the solution Mike speaks. It is muttered and soft so I miss it, but Meredith picks up on it. “Let me take a practice swing,” she repeats what he said. I got it then, that way we can see where the swing path was. Mike makes good contact the first swing, the balls goes 50 to 60 yards and I am in shock. After 5 or 6 more similar results I am questioning if I could do this one handed and from a seated position. Just then Mike “catches one,” if you are a golfer you know what I am talking about. The ball hits the sweet spot on the clubface and rockets effortlessly a good 90 yards in the air, his furthest shot so far. As we cheered, I looked at Mike and he was visibly excited, he felt that tuning fork go off when he struck the ball, it was true joy. A piece of dirt or something must have gotten in my eyes because they started to water. I knew that feeling of the tuning fork going off inside of you, the feeling of joy from the perfect shot. I don’t know why it struck me so deeply that we could share that same feeling of excitement together, but it was new connection he and I had. Please understand, Mike didn’t like golf before the accident and only has started to hit balls because it is one of the few things he can do. He is choosing to move forward, accepting what opportunities he has in front of him, it is his new life referred to as “after the little accident” by Mike and Meredith.

After a few more swings Mike tells us he is ready to play a few holes….WHAT!!! I am now in real shock, but that is what Mike wants to do so we wheel him over to the short game area and set up a few makeshift holes. The first is about 110 yards and I declare it to be a par 4. Mike reaches the green in two and then proceeds to 3 putt. “A bogie” he says quietly and then says “that just means there is room for improvement.” I love it! Mike is so competitive and driven that he is not limiting his ability by being tied to a wheelchair. I kind of felt bad for thinking that was the best he could do.

As we make our way to another hole, Meredith asked what that “ball picker upper thing” that Gerrit was using to push balls off the green was made out of. I told her it was PVC. Mike chirps up and asked “What is that, PVC?” I tell him it was invented by NASA and it a very lightweight plastic material that is very sturdy and I think it stands for poly something composite. He looked at me and said “Polyvinyl chloride, that’s what it is” and then looked away as if I should have known that. I smiled, but was sad to see a glimpse of Mike’s former self in his current state. This is Meredith’s life now; she enjoys everyday with Mike and relishes those flashes of his former self, with the hopes of more frequent flashes as time passes. Throughout each daily task they will continue to “dance,” facing the challenges of simple tasks in an embrace together.

I don’t imagine anyone reading this will get as much as Gerrit and I did out of it, but I am truly thankful for the experience. Meredith exemplifies the meaning of sacrificial love and to see if first hand was special. Mike served his country and now is fighting to heal, finding joy in new experiences and challenges every step of the way. Some will ask Mike and Meredith how they do it; I know their answer “in Christ alone.” They find peace in Him, the knowledge of victory over death, and the ultimate gift of eternal life with the Lord in heaven. If you don’t have this same peace, let me know and I will share how you can find it.