A New Beginning

This cold damp dreary February day finds us nursing our incredibly courageous and tenacious son back to health from a bout with the flu. Through increased breathing treatments, doses of Tylenol and steroids, plus lots and lots of snotty suctioning Ben still flashes a toothy grin every so often. After 18 years of off and on respiratory illnesses our boy knows this is just a short-term way of dealing with a disordered life. He knows that very soon his teacher will return for his twice-weekly school activities, that tales of Harry Potter will be told on his television screen, and Dad will once again "hike" with him around the neighborhood discussing the curiosities of suburban life.

This temporary routine is not so very common these days. Longtime readers of our old blog will recall many days, even weeks spent in hospital rooms with Ben recovering from numerous illnesses and seasonal allergy complications. Not surprisingly, as our son grew physically during his teenage years so did his capacity to fight off the bugs and viruses that seemed to sicken him on a regular basis. Truly this realization has been another positive gained during a time of difficulty!

That seems to be a theme that has occurred more often than not throughout Ben's life. There is no doubt that we as a family have certainly had our share of hardships and pain. Anyone associated with the care and upbringing of a child with a significant illness or disabilities knows this all too well. There have been far too many moments when it seemed that none of us could actually put one more foot forward into that vast dark forest of Fear and Doubt. At times it seemed life was some cruel cosmogonic test to discover one's breaking point.

Needless to say, things have changed for our family even though our situation has really not changed very much at all. Joan, Jessie, and myself continue to care for this very complicated and and sometimes difficult human being we call our son and brother. It was not his choice to be this way just it was not our choice to have our own lives become so complex and mystifying. What has changed is our acceptance of the lives we hold so dear to us - our own and that of the incredible young man named Ben! I guess you can say that our attitudes have improved considerably.

Over the next few days and weeks I would like to tell you about the cornerstone of this transformation within our family. It began about four and a half years ago when Make-A-Wish South Carolina entered our lives. Little did we know that an unconditional gift Ben received then would continue to currently provide hope, joy and meaning to Ben's loved ones and the community around us! We hope you will join us and become a part of that as well!

Give to Ben's Make-A-Wish team participating in the Spring 2018 Trailblaze Challenge!