Note: The authors of Helping Hands Press are hosting an Alzheimer's Disease Awareness and Care-givers Month blog tour. For this event, I am contributing this revised and abbreviated version of an earlier blog post.
While watching the
amazing young athletes of the Winter Olympics last February, I enjoyed the
“Thanks, Mom!” commercials in which the athletes thanked their mothers for supporting
them. Moms—and Dads—do deserve a great deal of credit for encouraging (and
often paying for) the success of their children, and I found those tributes
heart-warming and wonderful. Who couldn’t share the excitement, relief, and
pride of Meryl Davis’ and Charlie White’s mothers, cheering their ice dancing
prodigies on from childhood championships to Olympic gold? I could personally
relate to the tearful pride of the Olympians’ parents, as I have (proudly and
tearfully) celebrated my children’s collegiate national championships in
cheerleading and soccer, as well as countless games, tournaments, and
competitions.
Although I continue to support my children
in their endeavors, I am now also supporting my parents in theirs. Just two
years ago, we had five sons living in our home and a steady stream of their
friends visiting. Now with all our children—but the two youngest—happily
married, we’ve entered a new season of caring for my elderly parents. Our home has rapidly gone from a youth hostel
to an assisted living facility. My biblical
scholar dad has a failing heart, my beautiful mom has Alzheimer’s, and I now
have the role of caregiver. My mother’s
decline is particularly sad and difficult to watch—especially when I owe her so
much. She and my father instilled in me a love for literature, history, travel,
and most importantly, the Lord. For this reason, I dedicated my first book Inklings to them. My mom has been one of
my biggest cheerleaders in my writing career. As an excellent proof reader and
editor, she contributed more than anyone to making certain my books were
well-crafted. I’m saddened that my mother can no longer play that active role
in my writing-life. Once more, however, I would like to thank her publicly for
all she has done —by God’s grace —to mold me into the wife, mother, teacher,
and writer I am today.
“Thanks, Mom!”
