Ryans Story

Life Story of 5 year old
Ryan Alexander Maikowski

Hello, my name is Ryan and I was born at Mount Clemens General Hospital in Mount Clemens, Michigan on February 17th, 1993 at 1:01pm . I was a gift from God born unto Karen and Donald Maikowski and was instantly a little brother to Derek, who was 5 years and eight days older than I.

On that day in 1993 the weather was mild, with a bit of a chill in the air. The temperature was about 44 degrees and very sunny. I weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz.'s and was 21 inches long. A lot of people thought I looked just like my mom. We stayed in the hospital for 2 days and then my dad took me home to Gramma and Pa's house in Roseville, Michigan.

Things where going ok for me until I was 4 ½ months old. I just was not feeling very well when I woke up on July 6th; As usual I drank my bottle of that yucky stuff grown-ups call formula. (Suppose to be good for ya) After that I was still tired so I laid around all morning, just not being "myself" and then my mom got me up because she had a doctors appointment for herself.

Mom, my brother Derek and I went to the doctors and still I was not feeling well but at this age I could not say anything. As I lay in my carrier in the doctor’s office and mom was waiting for her time, my breathing became more shallow and I was pretty pale. When it was mom's turn, mom told Dr. Meech something was wrong with me. He asked some questions and starting checking me all over! Well he did not like what he saw and called out to his nurse to get a life-support ambulance there right away. My mom started crying and Derek did his best as a 5 year old could to comfort his mother (held mom's hand and told her it would be ok, what a brother!) I was taken to Mt. Clemens General Hospital emergency room and they poked at me some more. Mom called Dad at work and he rushed to the hospital.

The doctors determined that I had Intussusception (In-tus-sa-cep-tion) which is a really big word meaning that my intestine during its working process had grabbed onto itself and then folded over, causing a closed section in the intestine. The doctors said I would need emergency surgery but they would not be able to perform the operation there. The experts for this would meet us at St. Johns Hospital in Detroit. By the time the operation was to take place, Gramma D, Gramma M., Pa, Uncle Dennis and Aunt Tina had joined mom and dad in the waiting room. The operation was only to take about 2 hours but when they got inside me they saw that more damage was done then expected. In the end the doctors had removed part of my upper intestine and part of my lower intestine and for good measure they removed my appendix as a bonus. I was in the hospital for 6 days and then I was sent home with nothing more than a 4-inch scar across my belly and a full recovery report.

Well, as with most kids things where normal and I had just started to learn how to walk when exactly 1 year from the last time I was in St. Johns I was taken back on the same date. This time I had a fever that mom and dad could not get rid of and things were happening to me like my skin on my fingers and toes was beginning to peel, my tongue, lips, rims of my eyes, were all bright red, I had a rash on my torso, all kinds of 'fun' stuff. So after many test and many hours I was diagnosed with Kawasaki Disease, (Cow-a-sock-E) it is named after the founder of Kawasaki Motor Cycles whose son died from it. It is a rare oriental disease (no clue how I got it) that affects the heart in which the valves of the heart separate (explode), due to the extremely high temperature and swelling of the body, all which takes place in a 24-hour period after 10 days of fever. Well thanks to a passing doctor who was visiting from Children’s Hospital that day he noticed me and because of his experience with the disease had tests run to confirm. I was given an I.V. drip of hemoglobin and instantly you could see my temperature drop. After 2 weeks in the hospital I was sent home with an indestructible tolerance towards doctors and pain, along with a full recovery report.

I liked living at Gramma M. and Pa's because they had a really big yard for me to play in and Pa always had little jobs for me to help him with. A few things I liked most living there was riding the tractor to cut the grass and of course there was Gramma M. to play with and her chocolate chip cookies to eat. One great thing about living in Roseville is that only 7 miles away in Warren, Michigan was Gramma D's house and I used to go there all the time. Gramma D was always ready to play with me too, and she would take me to the movies, the arcade and the store all the time and I would get a little something because she likes to spoil all her grand kids. Sometimes when we were at Gramma D's, mom would take me over to her friends Kim & Darrell’s house. I would get to play with their kids Stephanie, Justin and Pamela.

While living in Roseville I met my very first friend, her name was Julie and she lived across the street. My mom would watch me cross the street to go over and play with her. She had her very own jungle gym and was a lot of fun to play with. I remember taking walks down the street to my mom's Cousin Cheri and Steve's house where Derek and I would play with Randy, Robby, and Kayla. There were two next-door neighbors who I liked to visit a lot, Mr. Bob who I liked because he would take things out of his garden for me to snack on and he always had peanuts in the shell out in his garage. On the other side was Miss Kristine who gave me ice cream whenever I would go there with my mom.

When I was about 2 3/4's years old mom and dad moved us out to Romeo, Michigan and I really liked it there. We moved in next door to Mr. Doug and Miss Terry and they had a whole bunch of kids but I later learned that there was really 4 who belonged to them, Krissy, Stevie, Joy, Bridgette and the rest were just friends. I liked going over to Miss Terry's because she always let me play on the slot machine and always had treats for me. I liked playing with their youngest daughters Joy and Bridgette even if they were girls. Mr. Doug was cool; he let me get away with everything.

Thinking back to some of the things I remember in my life was always rushing to get ready to go somewhere, like when we would go to my GG's (Great Grand Mother) house for Christmas. Everyone would show up at GG's in Detroit, Michigan on the outskirts of Hamtramack. Uncle George and Aunt Cathy along with my cousins Jeffery, Joey, and Krissy would be there first because they lived right across the street. Then there was more rushing and heading off to Uncle Matt and Aunt Bev's house at Thanksgiving time. I liked to go there because my cousins Lisa and Michael would play with me all the time.

I remember two of my really pool Uncles.... Did I say pool? I mean Cool, but Uncle Dennis and Aunt Tina and Cousin Dana had a built in pool that I liked to go swimming in. Aunt Tina gave me my first haircut when I was one. Then there was Uncle Mark and Aunt Renay and Cousin Corey who had a really big pool that I would go in with my Uncle Mark helping me. Corey always had a lot of toys to play with and he was just like my friend. Sometimes when I would go over Gramma D's to spend the night Uncle Steve would have to watch me when Gramma had things to do, and this was the best because he would let me sit on his dirt bike, or get up in his boat and play. Uncle Steve always made sure we stopped for lunch and we would have Jelly sandwiches. mmmmm.....mmmmmm.

Ever since I was born I have been a camper, I just loved to go up to River Valley Campground in Gladwin Michigan. A lot of times my dad who was working night shift would come home at 2:00 in the morning and pick me up out of bed and I would go up to the trailer with him. We were seasonal campers and friends and family would come up and camp with us. My friend Benjamin and his mom and dad (Mr. Rob and Miss Brenda) would come up and camp with us. Benjamin and I would play with toys or we would go down to the beach and play in the water. The best times camping was on the holiday weekends when there was a demo derby going on in town. My best buddy, my favorite, my mentor, my idol...(get the picture) my reason for not having any cars with all the pieces on them was Mr. Butch who drove car number thirty-four. Mr. Butch and C.J. would go to the track early to setup and Miss Ann and Melissa would go before us and always had a seat saved for me. C.J would be in the pits helping his dad, but they always came up to the stands to say hi before the race. Melissa would play with me while we waited and my friend Teddy was who I liked to sit by to watch the race. (Miss Ann always had snacks) After the race we would all go back to the campground and look at the smashed up cars that were there and sit around the campfire and talk about the race.

Some of my other favorite drivers who camped with us were Terry and Diaper Danny. They are really funny guys who always treated me like I was one of the big guys. At the campground, there was someone who was very, very, very special to me.... "THE CANDY LADY".... who else?? Miss Dee was always the nicest person who kept an eye on me whenever I was there. She would make sure I had eaten breakfast before she would let me buy any candy and Mr. Joe would help me with anything I needed. Sometimes I would help Mr. Joe do work around the dock area. My Uncle Dennis and Aunt Tina had friends who would camp at River Valley and I started playing with Miss Linda and Mr. Darrell's son Kyle. Kyle was a little older than me but we started getting along great. Mr. Jeff and Miss Linda had two kids, Rachel and Matthew but I was younger so we did not hang out too much unless it was around the fire at night. Mr. Rick and Miss Sue had two kids also, Chris and Rachel but Chris was grown-up and did not camp too much and Rachel was always playing with the other Rachel (girls...yukes) Grampa Tom (Aunt Tina's Dad) would camp here too, he was always laughing and sitting around talking with my Pa.

Growing up in Romeo was great; I would play roller hockey with my big brother Derek and his friends all the time. Derek taught me how to skate and to play the game. We first became interested in playing the game from our neighbor John who was much older then us kids...(an adult), who took the time to play with us whenever there was time for a game and I think everyday we made time. I guess it would be simple to say that Derek taught me everything. If it was something I watched him do I wanted to do it better and if it was something he taught me to do I wanted to do well at it for him. Derek was, in reality, my best friend, we would play together, fight with one another and get in trouble (a lot) together, our best times together was bedtime. I would sneak over to his room and hide in the closet when mom was coming or we would both hide in the closet and Derek would read me books. If that didn't work we would lay on the floor in front by our doors and whisper to each other and then hurry up and get in bed when we heard mom coming… (We always got caught). Watching cartoons on Saturday mornings was also one of our favorite times. The thing I will remember most about Derek is that he always included me in everything he did just like I was one of the big guys.

Another neighbor of ours who I will never forget is David Hayes and his girlfriend (now wife) Denise. David was the rough neck of the neighborhood on the outside but on the inside he was just a kid like us. David, his brother Matt and sister Jessica looked out for me like I was family. Denise was so nice to me, taking time to watch me do tricks on my bike that Dave showed me how to do or watch me when mom had to run to the store. Some of my other friends I will never forget were Donald and Mark & TJ & Amanda & Heather & Joey and Artie & Donavan (DD) and Kyle & Jesse and the "N Family" Noah & Nicole & Noel & Nick and Ashley & her sister Samantha… (Don't tell my mom) who was the first girl I ever kissed who was five just like me.

My mom and I would hang out together all the time, (because I was not old enough for school). I would get up in the morning just after mom got Derek off to school and she would help me setup my little table in the kitchen so that I could see the TV but would not spill anything on the rug. Mom used to find time to take me to the park or McDonald’s play land all time. I liked singing in the car with her. (I knew more words to the new songs than she did). Mom helped me to write my name and know my address and phone number. She taught me how to count. (I think I was up to 50, but always would forget number fifteen). I remember mom always fixing up my cuts and scraps (a lot) that I would get while playing. Mom was always ready to play with me or make something that we could use for the hockey game, like the Stanley Cup we made out of kitchen bowls and aluminum foil. Or the checkered flags for the demo derbies on our bikes. (Thanks mom)

My dad.... Well what can I say; I took care of my dad. Dad worked nights and so that meant he was sleeping when I got up. When mom started working a little bit, I would get up in the morning and eat the cereal she had set-up for me and I would watch TV for a little while (quietly) so dad could sleep. Dad bought me a dog (Jack Russell Terrier) that I called Patches and I would play with her or my toys until it was time to get dad up. (Sometimes I would pour him a bowl of cereal for breakfast) He would lay on the couch with me and we would watch cartoons, or he would go outside and he would watch me ride my bike until mom got home and it was time for him to go to work. I remember when dad would come home from work around 5:00am and I would get up and take my blanket and lay with him and we would watch a movie or something and then we would both fall asleep. I liked working with my dad because he would always find something I could do to help. The best time was when we where working on the deck and we where underneath it and I went in the house and got us some chocolate chip cookies that we had from Gramma M's and we just laid under the deck like it was our little fort..., (did not get much work done but those cookies sure tasted good that day.)

Ok, now about two weeks before summer vacation my mom and I spent the night at Gramma D's house and during the night I was woken by a bad dream that someone was in the house. I just knew there was someone there with me. Mom and I searched the house with to show me there was no one there... (I think there was). From that day mom and dad noticed that I was giving hugs goodbye to everyone before I left them… (Not a normal thing for a five-year-old boy). Also I would get scared at night now whenever it got dark and I was afraid to watch one of my favorite cartoons (scooby-doo) alone. Mom said she would take me to the doctors after vacation. I came up with nicknames for my mom and dad (Momzers and Dada) I think they got a kick out of it when I called them that.

Vacation time was here and we all went up to the campground, I could not wait to see my friends and show them the new bike that Gramma D. had bought for me to take. I knew there would be work to do when we first got there and I helped dad wash the trailer the first day. The second day Derek and I kicked Mom and Dads butt playing lawn dice while Gramma M. cheered us on. Tuesday July 28th I woke up and did not feel like going to play with my friends so I went to the beach with my mom. I did not want to play at the beach very long so I went and helped Dad and Mr. Joe clean the paddleboats. We worked all day it seemed like, but I was having fun. After the boats Dad and I went back to the trailer, Dad was going to cook dinner that night so he laid on the bed to take a rest. Mom was getting a few things ready for dinner and I was just hanging around.

Dad and Mom told Derek to take me with him and his friends on a bike ride through the trails out in the back of the park. It was usually a place only the big kids go so Derek did not want to take me. Dad and Mom made Derek take me along or he was not going to be allowed to go so he did. (I think he would have taken me anyway if he were not trying to act cool in front of his friends). After we were riding for a bit up in the trails we all decided to take a break under a picnic pavilion at the back of the campground. No one was using it so Derek and his friends set down a picnic table for us to sit on. I was sitting at the picnic table and Derek and his friends were playing demo on their bikes under the pavilion… (I was sitting out because I was stuck on the logs... ha-ha). Suddenly we heard a loud noise and Derek's friends yelled get out.

A large Cotton Wood tree about 75 feet tall and 3 feet in diameter broke off about 3 feet from the base and fell directly over the corner of the pavilion where I was sitting. I never had a chance to move like the big kids, and I was unable get out and was crushed by the roof and the tree. Everyone came running and tried with chainsaws to get me out and rushed me to the hospital but it was to late for them and an "Angel" of the Lord had come to show me the way home.

I will miss you all, and send my LOVE. Be sure to watch for my ladybugs, butterflies and special dimes (I used to collect them).

***NOTE*** This was by far the hardest thing I have ever had to write. Please forgive me if there is someone or something I did not mention. Please send me your comments via E-mail if there is something that needs to be added or removed.

Don Maikowski
(Ryan's Dad Forever)