It's been a long time since I've updated this. I wanted to make sure all was going well and we had a better idea of what was going on with Tom's knee. I've posted some excerpts from his email over the past several weeks which brings us current and are hopeful that his knee is mending and he wont' need surgery.

Nov. 30
"Okay...on to sad news! I had to go to the emergency room yesterday! My Sunday morning started off normal, with nothing too big happening. We went down to our church to turn the heat on and my leg started to hurt a tiny, tiny, TINY bit above my knee. I thought it was a muscle charly horse thingy, so I just wanted to walk it off. Long story short, over the course of walking the pain got worse and worse and worse, until by the end of the day I was hobbling in pain. We called Luckie (member) to see if we could visit him and teach him since I didn't want to stay in the apartment like I did in quarantine in the MtC. He agreed but said we should walk to his house and he would pick us up on the way. Well I tried to do that since I didn't want to be a lazy good for nothing and on the way the pain was getting worse and worse. I couldn't bend my knee too far forward or back. We got in Luckies car when he picked us up and that hurt to do...at his house, I put some creme on it for my muscles, but the pain was now constant, regardless of whether I moved or not. Elder Anderson blessed me and we called our doctor in Frankfurt who said go to the emergency room. So we did, and it was painful and slow. The doctor was a very nice young man though and I appreciated their hep. They sent me home for the night with pain ppills, a shot in the stomach (of something) and some crutches. It was a long hard night, but I feel better today. Dr. Maddock in Frankfurt wants me to get an ultrasound though to prove I don't have a blood clot and for me to see a sports doctor. Luckie is good friends with one, and got me an appointment at 1 today. So, we are doing email until we go down there for that."

Nov.30
"So!
I went to the doctor today and they did an Ultrasound and found that my hurt knee was retaining tons of fluid in its knee sack. O.O The doctors sucked it all out though and I feel TONS better XD Still can't walk enough to work though (hobbling on crutches), but tomorrow I have to go in for an MRI to see what is the possible cause of the fluid retention. Hopefully it won't be too bad. If it is, you will be notified!
Thanks for your prayers!"

Dec. 1
"I had my MRI today and it went well. 15 minutes laying on my back while a big metal donut hummed around my legs and then they injected me with dye and did another 6 minutes or so. It was easy and fast. My Dr. was from Vietnam. Dr. Ho and he was quite nice. I have another appointment with my orthopedist on Thursday to discuss the MRI results. I am doing much better and am borrowing Luckies internet to inform you of the updates. He is such a nice guy. He is like my Jamacian father out here in Germany. He takes such good care of the missionaries XD. I love him. Thanks for your concern! Will keep you posted.
Love Elder Tom"

Dec. 3
"Oi Family!
So I had my appointment with Dr. Ostendorp and it went quite well. He said that my manisucs(spelling?XD) is a bit damaged. The maniscus is the proofer that goes in between my knee joints. It has been raw and cut for a while now, but my mission walking has aggravated it. My body, in response sent tons of fluid down there saying "fat man is walking now! Must repair knee!!! XD However, my body sent too much fluid down there cuz I scared it. So, that is why we took it out. There is more fluid there now, but not NEARLY as much and I am fairing a lot better. I can walk around my apartment just fine, but the doctor says I must use my crutches outside for safety. Have been doing that already so it's all good. My work can sorta progress, but much much lighter and slower. :( We will do what we can!
The doctors say that my knee can heal in about a week or two on its own if I am off it just right. I have an appointment next Thursday to find out if all is well. If it is getting better, I will be healed soon and normal again. If it isn't healing by Thursday, then I will have to get an operation. Simple operation with 2 tiny slit in my knee, one for a camera and one for tools, similar to dads heart surgery stent thingy, I believe. Hopefully it won't come to that, cuz if it does, Dr. Maddock, the German mission doctor, might send me home for the operation o.o We will find that out shortly!"

Dec. 7
"My knee is healing well! I can bend it a bit more now which is good. Thanks for all your prayers! I know they have been helping. I would theoretically have to go home because according to the mission Doctor, Doctor Maddock, missionaries have to recover longer than normal people to get back to their work since they walk 8 miles a day, bike upwards of 20, and stand for 16 hours a day. It's strenuous and if I was gonna be out for 3 weeks or more, they want me home and not wasting time on my mission. If that happens though, President Thompson says I get to come back here to Germany Hamburg mission, so that would be a plus...it would just be hard to come back is all. Lots of missionaries who go home never do come back, they just can't get the desire back up I guess....so that scares me! We will see XD. Luckie says I won't need surgery cuz he didn't, so I hope he is right XD"

Dec. 14
"You are right in your assumption that no news means good news. XD Didn't have a chance to email you because we have been busy. I am allowed to walk 4 hours a day with my crutches because my knee is healing by itself. No operation needed so far. I must remain careful as to not make it chronic though. I have another appointment on the 21st."

Dec. 21
"Knee appointment went well! I am able to walk by myself now. I have to retrain me knee. So it's hard, but I am making progress. I have another appointment this Wednesday to have blood taken so they can do an analysis to ward off any possibilities of something really bad being the cause of my knee problem. Should go down well.
I will be spending Christmas Eve (Heilige Abend) with a non-member friend of ours named Constance. We are doing a 4 p.m. mass with her and her family at the Lamberti Church and then eating with them at their house. IT will be cool!"