Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined this would happen. It certainly wasn’t the path she had planned out for her life. When she initially got the news she was stunned. After all, this pregnancy wasn’t even expected in the first place. But to then get the news that this child wouldn’t Read More…
Love fiercely, run the race, finish strong
“You’ve got to be kidding, right? I can’t do that. How am I supposed to do that when I don’t feel it at all?” My wife had just presented an idea she had to our team at work. For the week prior to Thanksgiving, she wanted people to film short videos on gratitude. Each Read More…
Caregivers Aren’t Superheroes
For years I have proclaimed and written that special needs moms are superheroes. I have often proclaimed my awe, amazement, and admiration for the special needs mom and for caregivers. I have shared my thoughts on my own wife and her days as a caregiver to our own son with profound special needs. I’ve Read More…
Superman Turns Eighteen
I was the first person to ever see you when you entered our world. I still remember holding you in my arms for the first time and whispering, “I’m your dad, I’m here to take care of you.” It’s now been eighteen years since I uttered those words to you. We were supposed to Read More…
I Never Dreamed
This week one of my good friends accompanied his eighteen-year-old son off to join the Marines. Another friend sent his eighteen-year-old child off to college. My son turns eighteen this month. Last night he peed in the bathtub. The gap between our life and the life of a typical family is sometimes so Read More…
We Had Fireworks After All
We didn’t shoot off any fireworks on the Fourth of July. We didn’t even watch others shoot them off. Nor did we attend our city’s big fireworks show either. My special-need son is in bed by 8:30 at night and it’s barely dark. No time at the pool or lake. No backyard games and Read More…
From One Dad To Another
He is completely dependent on me for everything in his life. From the moment he wakes up until the moment he drifts off to sleep at night, I have to provide his every need. He is incapable of surviving in this world without me. He’s utterly helpless on his own. Without me in his Read More…
Green Jell-O and Gratitude
Green Jell-O. Who in the world would ever suspect me of being grateful for green Jell-O? What 48-year old man would get excited, downright giddy, over the appearance of green Jell-O on a hospital tray? And yet I would peel the plastic top off the container in suspense, and then eagerly and joyfully consume Read More…
Seven Minutes
Seven minutes. Seven minutes of chest compressions as they struggled to restart my heart. Seven minutes between life and death. I was receiving a dialysis treatment when I realized I was rapidly getting short of breath and struggling to breathe. In a matter of minutes I went into respiratory arrest. Becky had Read More…
The Valentine Letter
No chocolates, no flowers, not even a card. I know you say to yourself “That’s OK, what I really wanted was a nap anyway.” But you didn’t get that either. The dishes still lay untouched in the sink. The baskets of unfolded clothes are stacked on top of each other like planes circling the airport. Read More…