Sophia Taylor is back running around her yard in Crofton and acting just like any other normal three-year-old less than a month after suffering serious injuries during a fall at Ladysmith鈥檚 Transfer Beach Park.
Sophia is mostly oblivious to what鈥檚 happened to her during an interview I conducted with her and mom Selina at their Crofton home Thursday. They only returned home last Friday from a three-week stay at BC Children鈥檚 Hospital in Vancouver where the prognosis for Sophia at first didn鈥檛 look good.
I asked her about the incident and the hospital, but like any young child she wanted to talk about other things once she got to know me.
A deer walking through the yard provides a distraction for an active young mind.
鈥淚 want to pet it,鈥� said Sophia.
Sophia and brother Elija, 4 1/2, are curious about my camera and notebook. Sophia鈥檚 concentration on the interview ends at that point and Selina takes over.
She has two other children, Gabriel, 7 1/2, and Zoee, 6, who are both in school at the time.
It鈥檚 a busy family and Selina is relieved the scare from the incident did not result in any permanent brain damage for Sophia after she fell 20 feet onto concrete.
鈥淭he brain is amazing,鈥� said Selina.
鈥淔or her, she still has some speech that needs to be worked on in speech therapy. Her balance has come back for the most part.鈥�
Selina has noticed some frustration on Sophia鈥檚 part with her speech.
鈥淪he will think about what she wants to say and sometimes it won鈥檛 come out,鈥� Selina said.
There is no need to return to BC Children鈥檚 Hospital for a follow-up, but there will be some therapy and a further assessment on her brain injury to be done in April.
But other than that, things worked out far better than could have been expected, with subtle differences.
鈥淪he鈥檚 a lot more emotional than she was before,鈥� observed Selina.
鈥淚鈥檓 still kind of in shock over the whole thing. I鈥檝e been in the hospital for three weeks with her. The first week was the worst. It鈥檚 so nice to be home and in our usual routine.鈥�
After the interview heads, I鈥檓 heading toward Chemainus and it hits me I should have had a picture taken of myself with Sophia. One day she鈥檒l need a reminder of her first newspaper interview and I wanted to record it as being among the most memorable and heartwarming stories I鈥檝e done because of her remarkable recovery.
When I return to the Taylor house later, Sophia immediately recognizes me and gives me a big hug. It鈥檚 an uplifting moment amid some of the troubling times we鈥檝e been experiencing.
