What Next?

[JoeRaisin <joeraisin@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

My older brother (Mid 50's) was flown to a hospital downstate (Michigan)
  on Monday.  He was in a coma and unresponsive following an early
morning trip to the emergency room with a severe headache.

The doctors told my sister-in-law that there is a baseball sized area of
bleeding putting pressure on his brain.  The damage has been significant.

They did another CAT Scan today which (according to the phone call I
just received) shows that the damaged area is expanding.  Apparently if
he does wake up his right side will be paralyzed, he will have lost his
verbal function and most of his cognitive reasoning.  But his waking up
is not likely.  They meet with the neurosurgeon tomorrow morning.

He is 53 years old.  He married his high school sweetheart and she is by
his side as he struggles.  They have three daughters and a son.  Two of
the girls were international adoptions from Korea.

He teaches science at a Catholic middle school and has a reputation as a
fun teacher but a hard grader.  He loved the Bill Nye the Science Guy
show.  Every once in a while, in the course of my job I meet families
who have had kids who had him for a teacher.  invariably, when they find
out who my brother is their faces brighten up and they can't say enough
nice things.  Heck, even the staff at the local AM radio station (I test
their fire alarms) have nothing but nice things to say about him.  They
know him because he is a frequent winner of trivia and word quiz contests.

His dream was to some day appear on Jeopardy and he used to watch the
show with an oversize retractable pen in his hand and practice.  Two
weeks ago he attended the tryouts in Chicago.  He wore a specially
ordered shirt that matched one he wears in class but without the logo.
He was careful to avoid any foods that might make his throat 'scratchy'
and agonized over the decision on whether to keep his beard or shave it
(he kept it).  His biggest concern was that his neck looks lopsided ever
since his cancer surgery over a decade ago.

He carefully planned everything so if he didn't make it he wouldn't look
back and 'what if' himself to death.  He would know that he gave it his
best shot and no excuses.  He was relaxed and even got a few laughs.

When it was over he had done well enough to be placed in the pool for
this season and next.

It just isn't fair.

I'm sad and I am angry.