After my experience being my husband's caretaker while he slowly passed away from ALS, I went through many moods and attitudes - strength, patience, fear, humility, faith, hope, heartache - but mostly I learned courage.
It is supremely heart-breaking to watch a loved one deal with a long, debilitating and fatal disease.
...to know that what you thought would last forever now has a specific time limit.
...to try to cram into a short span the things you were "saving for", "dreaming about", "putting off until tomorrow for".
...to say the things that you haven't said yet, or to not say the things if this disease hadn't hit.
My heart goes out to everyone whose illness or disease has a definite and final end. But in my heart I have a special place for those saints - wives, parents, children, siblings - who choose to care for them; to do the things they can't do anymore; to be their advocate; to become their nurse, translator, chauffeur, cook; to cry in secret so that they don't give up hope; to see them hurt, afraid, and weak.
These people have Courage. I'm not saying they don't rant and rave against their circumstances. It would be a miracle if they got through a day without crying, losing hope, being so tired they don't want to get up in the morning. But they do, despite the pain, the work, the loss. They are true unsung heroes.
So to all these heroes who fight the fight with their loved ones, this card is for you. You may not know that the Sunflower is the national symbol for ALS Awareness:
“The sunflower,” (Shirley Hoffman Schmelzle) explained, “stands tall and strong,
ever hopeful and ever reaching higher. Sunflowers grow in clusters
and support each other as they grow, just as family, friends and community
offer support to those who live with ALS.”
There are a lot of resources and support out there. Start first with the ALS Foundation, which will have specifics on your situation. God bless you all...
