The Chosen Mothers
by Erma Bombeck
Most women become a mother by accident, some by choice
and a few by habit. Did you ever wonder how mother's of
children with life threatening illnesses are chosen?
Somehow, I visualize God hovering over earth
selecting His instruments for progagation with great care and deliberation.
As He observes, He instructs His angels
to make notes in a giant ledger.......
"Armstrong, Beth, son, patron saint Matthew"
Forrest, Marjorie, daughter, patron saint Cecilia"
Rutledge, Carrie, twins, partron saint Greard."
Finally, He passes a name to an angel and says, "Give
her a child with cancer." The angel is curious. "Why this
one, God? She's so happy."
"Exactly," smiles God, "Could I give a child with cancer
a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel."
"But, does she have patience?" asks the angel,
"I don't want her to have too much patience or she will
drown in a sea of self-pity and despair. Once the shock and
resentment wears off, she will handle it."
"I watched her today," said God. "She has that feeling
of self-independence that is so rare and necessary in a mother.
You see, the child I'm going to give her has it's own world.
She has to make it live in her world and that's not going to be easy."
"But Lord, I don't think she believes in you," said the angel.
"No matter, I can fix that. This one is perfect. She has just
enough selfishness."
The angel gasps, "Selfishness? Is that a virtue?"
God nods. "If she can't separate herself from the child
occasionally, she'll never survive. Yes, here is the woman I will bless
with a child less than perfect. She doesn't realize it yet,
but she is to be envied. She will never take anything her child does for
granted. She will never consider a single step
ordinary. I will permit her to see clearly the things I see....ignorance,
cruelty, prejudice....and allow her to rise above them."
"And what about her patron saint" asks the angel, his pen poised in mid-air.
God smiles and says..."A mirror will suffice."
~walk softly and discover~
Tuesday, June 08, 2010
Friday, April 23, 2010
To All You CF Mommas
I don’t know where to start this
So I guess I’ll use the start
The part where you had a sick baby
I know it broke your heart…
All the medications
You had to make me take
The clapping and the enzymes
The strength you sometimes faked…
Through my teenage years
I know I was a pain
Thank you for putting up with me
Though driving you insane…
Every time you’d hear me cough
I know it would stop your heart
When I’d get an infection
It must have torn you apart…
Now that I’m a mother too
I am always looking back
I can’t imagine what you’d go through
Listening to me hack…
Thank you for teaching me
That CF was not an excuse
And making me take my pills
When I tried to refuse…
You are my CF momma
No words can explain
The strength you possess inside
That gets you through the pain…
That strength you had to get up
In the middle of the night
To bring me a glass of water
And be there by my side…
To teach me to love others
As much as I love myself
And sometimes you taught me
To put my pride up on the shelf…
I know sometimes you blame yourself
For that gosh darned faulty gene
I want you to know that I wouldn’t
Change it for anything…
That gene made me who I am today
A strong amazing girl
I wouldn’t change one thing
About my CF world…
I have met terrific people
I am helping to do amazing things
All because of that one
Gosh darned faulty gene!!!
Posted on Breathe 4 Tomorrow
You Know You're A CF Parent When ....
*You've used puppets, toys, sung, danced, pleaded and generally made a
fool out of yourself all in an effort to get your child to eat
*You've stockpiled enough applesauce to start your own factory
*You find loose enzyme beads literally everywhere: the car, your
clothes, on the ceiling (not joking)
*You count more calories than sheep
*You add salt to everything and use butter as a general cooking base
even when a recipe doesn't call for it
*You panic when your child sneezes
*Your child coughs and you immediately chant "albuterol four times a day!"
*You check websites daily for news about a cure
*You're house has more medications than the pharmacy
*You've actually found yourself explaining a medication to the
pharmacist, instead of the other way around
*You've considered dying all your child's clothes yellow or orange to
hide the vitamin stains
*Your medical bills are looking more and more like the national debt
*You've prayed for your child to be fat
*You've actually found yourself exclaiming angrily in the grocery
store upon discovering extra-cheesy mac doesn't have more calories
than regular (sadly true)
*You know what the poopie dance is, and you've done it
*You've had long involved discussions with other parents about poop
*You've started referring to everything in acronyms
*You can describe the hospital's daily menu in exact detail
*Purel and Lysol are in every room in your house
*You've considered life-long quarantine for your child
*You've told someone off for coughing near your child
*You have multiple doctors on speed dial
*You've memorized all the doctor's phone numbers but can't remember
your own
*You refer to CPT as your child's nightly beating
*You've bought a fancy baby scale for peace of mind
*The pediatrician sees you more often than their own staff
*You tend to refer to life AD & BD, After Diagnosis and Before Diagnosis
*You've cried over half a pound
*Your child comes with an instruction manual if you leave them with a
babysitter
*You've forgotten what normal is
*You find empty enzyme capsules in your pockets & in the seats of your car
*Your child wears a neb mask more easily than they do a hat
*Your child has started trying to do their own CPT
*You've forgotten to put meds in the nebulizer and actually let it run
several minutes before discovering the problem
*Your child's vest machine has logged more hours than your car has miles
*You think it's normal to spend four hours at the doctor's office for
a regular visit
*Your child could start her own medical practice, she has so many
doctor's kits & medical related toys
*Half of your child's vocabulary consists of medical terms
*Your child routinely tells complete strangers all about the "icky
germs" in her lungs
*You fear Chucky Cheese and other similar festering germ pools
*You've taught your child to run away if another kid coughs or sneezes
near them
*You've developed sick child radar and can instantly spot a runny nose
from across the room
*You own more children's movies than Blockbuster because they're
useful for treatment time and during those long stays in the hospital
*Your child begs to do treatments so she can watch tv or do a special
activity
*You have entire drawers and cabinets devoted to your child's medical
equipment
*You've replaced the hand towels in your home with paper towel dispensers
*You've learned to calculate max daily enzymes by body weight in your head
*The nurses at the hospital and doctors office know you on sight
*You own a medical-grade stethoscope and have learned to use it
*You own every kids book about doctors and hospitals that has been written
*You begin most phone conversations by stating your child's name and
date of birth
fool out of yourself all in an effort to get your child to eat
*You've stockpiled enough applesauce to start your own factory
*You find loose enzyme beads literally everywhere: the car, your
clothes, on the ceiling (not joking)
*You count more calories than sheep
*You add salt to everything and use butter as a general cooking base
even when a recipe doesn't call for it
*You panic when your child sneezes
*Your child coughs and you immediately chant "albuterol four times a day!"
*You check websites daily for news about a cure
*You're house has more medications than the pharmacy
*You've actually found yourself explaining a medication to the
pharmacist, instead of the other way around
*You've considered dying all your child's clothes yellow or orange to
hide the vitamin stains
*Your medical bills are looking more and more like the national debt
*You've prayed for your child to be fat
*You've actually found yourself exclaiming angrily in the grocery
store upon discovering extra-cheesy mac doesn't have more calories
than regular (sadly true)
*You know what the poopie dance is, and you've done it
*You've had long involved discussions with other parents about poop
*You've started referring to everything in acronyms
*You can describe the hospital's daily menu in exact detail
*Purel and Lysol are in every room in your house
*You've considered life-long quarantine for your child
*You've told someone off for coughing near your child
*You have multiple doctors on speed dial
*You've memorized all the doctor's phone numbers but can't remember
your own
*You refer to CPT as your child's nightly beating
*You've bought a fancy baby scale for peace of mind
*The pediatrician sees you more often than their own staff
*You tend to refer to life AD & BD, After Diagnosis and Before Diagnosis
*You've cried over half a pound
*Your child comes with an instruction manual if you leave them with a
babysitter
*You've forgotten what normal is
*You find empty enzyme capsules in your pockets & in the seats of your car
*Your child wears a neb mask more easily than they do a hat
*Your child has started trying to do their own CPT
*You've forgotten to put meds in the nebulizer and actually let it run
several minutes before discovering the problem
*Your child's vest machine has logged more hours than your car has miles
*You think it's normal to spend four hours at the doctor's office for
a regular visit
*Your child could start her own medical practice, she has so many
doctor's kits & medical related toys
*Half of your child's vocabulary consists of medical terms
*Your child routinely tells complete strangers all about the "icky
germs" in her lungs
*You fear Chucky Cheese and other similar festering germ pools
*You've taught your child to run away if another kid coughs or sneezes
near them
*You've developed sick child radar and can instantly spot a runny nose
from across the room
*You own more children's movies than Blockbuster because they're
useful for treatment time and during those long stays in the hospital
*Your child begs to do treatments so she can watch tv or do a special
activity
*You have entire drawers and cabinets devoted to your child's medical
equipment
*You've replaced the hand towels in your home with paper towel dispensers
*You've learned to calculate max daily enzymes by body weight in your head
*The nurses at the hospital and doctors office know you on sight
*You own a medical-grade stethoscope and have learned to use it
*You own every kids book about doctors and hospitals that has been written
*You begin most phone conversations by stating your child's name and
date of birth
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Great Strides Walk....slowly approaching!
Well Annika's Dancers. That time has come again. Yes that's right, The Great Strides Walk. Is it unrealistic to aim for $4000.00 from our team? Can we not fight for this goal. If we can acheive this goal I personally will by the pizzas to go with the free Spitfire tickets, and we can celebrate as a team! Let's GO ANNIKA'S DANCERS, Let's GO! Come on team! If you haven't signed up on the website, go now please. Online pledges are a great way to ask for help from people you don't see everyday. I posted this link to my facebook page, and $400 in pledges later......? Come on fight for a cure, and a great night out!
Saturday, April 03, 2010
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