Johnny Barnett was 10 years old when I first met him. My first thoughts were, "this kid was born to drive me crazy! and he is going to drive me crazy before this day is done!". I remember always feeling like there was something very special about Johnny. Even though he was a couple of years older than my grandson, Caleb, they played well together, so I had to forgive any transgressions. One day I asked Caleb what it was about Johnny that made them be such good friends..."what do you like about this kid?" I asked. Caleb reassured me with a great big smile and by telling me, "He is smart, he is funny and he is my friend."
The day that I met him, Johnny, Caleb, and another friend, Toby, were building dams in the front yard. Of course, there is no need for a dam unless you have water. One of the other boys had the water hose and wouldn't share it, so instead of making a bug fuss, Johnny just came to me, told me he was thirsty and asked for some water....only he wanted some of that bottled water in the fridge. I said, "Of course, honey, you can have all you need." With that, I turned around and went back to doing whatever it was that I was doing, not paying close attention to their activities, afterall, they were responsible 9 and 10 year old boys.
Within 30 minutes, the 3 boys had taken a whole case of bottled water out of the fridge so they could build a lake for their dam! The water hose had lost it's charm! When I discover what they had done, it was too late. All of the cold water was in the hot summer yard, being a lake for their masterpiece. Of course, I thought that amount of water wasted was going to kill me, but it didn't and I soon got over my upset with them.
The rest of that summer was the usual fare with the neighborhood boys ringing the door bell at 7AM, wanting to play, looking for breakfast, always leaving the front door open, trying to air condition the world, constantly asking for food, drinks, TV...laughing, talking, asking question that a grandma doesn't want to answer...whatever it was, they just seemed to want to make sure there was a friend, an adult onboard. Johnny was always at the front of the gang, seemingly the leader with the most imagination.
A few months later, my daughter called to give me the sad news. Johnny Barnett had been injured in a car wreck. He and his father were returning from San Antonio when one of the tires blew out. His father lost control of the car as it went careening over an embankment, rolling several times down a steep hill before coming to a stop. Johnny's dad lay there with severe head trauma and little 10 year old Johnny lay there with a broken neck. His head was clinging to his body by one little nerve.
I have always felt that it is by the grace of God that in one of the cars on the highway a group of doctors traveling to a seminar witnessed the accident. They were immediately on the scene with emergency care, saving both Johnny's and his dad's lives. Their timing was crucial. Johnny's life had taken a major turn. All of our lives had taken a major turn.
So many things happened after the accident. There was an outpouring of support from the community as we watched Johnny try to recover and as we all tried to recover from the shock. We watched with tears in our eyes as he cried for hours trying to understand the severity of his condition. We felt sadness as we watched him deal with the depression that followed. He was a very active 10 year old boy who would be confined to a motionless life. He would never run, ride a bicycle,play football, chase girls, nor build dams again. His body had stopped living while his highly intellectual brain was on overload.
His story was covered in the newspaper and on the TV. He and his family got so much attention and as much help as anyone can get. Of course, that didn't make the situation go away. Nor did it take the sadness out of the fact that a 10 year old little boy, Johnny Barnett, was paralysed from the neck down. Finally, life went back to its normal flow. All of the kids went back to school and Johnny spent his time learning how to live as a quadrapalegic.
I didn't see Johnny again for several years. His family moved into another neighborhood and my life took me in another direction, another life, another town. To be honest, I forgot all about him until recently when I moved back to Lakeway.
I had the priviledge of riding on his school bus on several different occasions this past year. I was amazed that he remembered me. He even asked about Caleb. He also amazed me at his sense of humor regarding his condition versus the rest of the world. He always had a smile on his face and a joke on his lips. Of course he really didn't talk much because he had to reserve his air for necessary mobility. His wheelchair was powered by Johnny's breathing into a special tube. He was an A plus student and except for moments of fear and discomfort, he was one of the most polite people I have ever met.
On June 20, 2009, 15 year old Johnny Barnett passed away. He has taught all of the lessons he came to teach. He has passed on into another world, a better less demanding place, I hope. If you missed his classes in life lessons, well, maybe you didn't need them. I am glad and honored that he was one of my teachers. I will never forget him.
Johnny was a multiple organ donor and in his memory, his family as has asked in lieu of flowers that donations be made to the Texas Organ Sharing Alliance 7000 South MoPac Ste 325, Austin TX 78731. 512-459-4848. msegovia@txorgansharing.org.
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