This picture was taken a little over a year ago – August to
be exact. I had just undergone what was supposed to be a very straight forward cardiac
ablation. But because of the complexity of my illnesses and all of the
medications I am on, nothing, absolutely nothing is ever straight forward. This
particular surgery ended with the largest hematoma in my abdomen that my
doctors at the University of Minnesota had ever seen. It was serious business
and the recovery took months.
I have had countless situations in the past four years that
have begun as simple procedures or administrations of medication and have ended
with complex and life threatening circumstances. Too many to count and enough
so, that visits to the emergency room bring a tremendous amount of fear to both
myself and my family.
I’ve only seen this picture once before. I stumbled upon it,
not knowing that it had been taken. The first time I could not even look at it.
Not because of my own situation, but because of my daughter Emma, who is sitting
next to me in the photo. This time, in
my searching through photos this morning for something to post, I let myself
linger a bit. A year has passed since then, and there have been other
situations much like this one, where my family has been by my side. I cannot imagine what they go through.
Four years I have been sick now. Four years they have never
left my side. Four years of hospitalizations, emergency room visits, life
threatening reactions, coding - four years of chronic illness. Four years, day
in and day out, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, three hundred and
sixty-five days a year – my illness has impacted their life. I will never fully
comprehend the affect this has had on their lives. Just looking at the face of
my daughter in this picture makes my heart so heavy I begin to weep.
Yet, not once has my husband or any of our seven daughters
ever complained. No once have I witnessed their frustration or anger. Not once
have I ever heard bitterness or any complaint in regards to the chaos this has
brought into our lives. Countless vacations have been canceled, plans have been
changed, meals have been disrupted, work and school has been missed – sacrifice
after sacrifice has been made on my behalf. At times my illness consumes all
that is in its path and nothing shakes their unconditional love for me. Nothing.
I cannot imagine a love so great. I cannot fathom the depth
and breadth of such a thing. I can only be present in its grace. That is all I
can do. Lay myself open to this gift and simply receive. And then, with all
that I have and all that I am – love in return.
To my family,
I love you. I love you beyond anything I could ever imagine.
Thank you for loving me so well.
....
Mom xxoo
7 comments:
Dear sweet Teresa,
You are truly blessed.
You are a blessing to all whose lives you touch.
I wish you well this beautiful day.
with love,
Susan
Beautiful. Your family is your strength, as it should be. A beautiful reflection.
Your family is so loving, and please know that even though you do not hear from me very often- you are always on my heart- because your story has touched us.
I am so thankful your family surrounds you with so much love.
love
tweedles
nice site realy nice
Thank you for sharing your site with me. I have a good friend many states away from here who has Lupus and RA, and we connected after many years, surprised to find the similarities in our lives at this point. MS and Lupus are not so different, and RA seems to accompany so many other auto-immune diseases.
My health blog is growing, but the fuller story is told in my book, Multiple Sclerosis an Enigma. It's on kindle now. I wrote it as a diagnosis/reflection, but it is truly a love story. My husband is my greatest strength, and I thank God for him everyday.
Be well, my new friend, as well as you can be. And have peace with what you have. Love is the greatest strength for all of us.
You are truly blessed by such a loving and caring family. But I have no doubt they feel just as blessed having a Mom like you.
So many beautiful comments. The past weeks have been difficult for me, so I have not been able to write as of late. To come back to this... Well, it's truly a gift. I sit and ponder the lives behind the words. I wonder of your stories, of your days, of your hopes and of your fears. We are the same, you and I. One in this world, making our way the best we can. Living, loving and making new with each breath we are given.
I am thankful beyond measure.
Peace to you all.
Theresa
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