There comes a time in everyone’s life when one can’t help but question every single aspect in one’s life. I say with only a smidgen of bitterness and self-regret that, indeed, I have reached that very point. Even as I write this and send it out into the unforgiving realm of cyberspace, I anguish over my simple, yet piercing, painstaking words: my grandfather is dying.
Having lost my dad’s mom but this past year to Alzheimer’s, I am now struggling internally with the harsh reality that the only grandfather I’ve known in my life, my mom’s dad, is finally losing his long, drawn-out battle with cancer, after about six or seven years. My mom’s mom being the only grandparent I will have left before long, we will be flying to Puerto Rico sometime this weekend, maybe tomorrow, to offer my family one last bit of futile emotional support.
My mom’s parents have eleven grandchildren. I am the oldest of four female cousins, the others being 17, four and two years old. We were as tight-knit as Latino families can get. I admit that I have dealt with my own share of personal medical issues, and, as far back as I can remember, they have always been there for me when I’ve needed them.
Having been born with spina bifida, I have had 18 surgeries from head to toe, and countless hospitalizations and doctor’s appointments. Spina bifida is a separation in the spinal cord which occurs from the spine’s inability to close properly within the first few week’s of a woman’s pregnancy. It is the number one cause of paralysis in children in America. Fortunately, I guess, I can walk with the aid of leg braces and sometimes, a wheelchair.
One point I want to make right off the bat, way at the beginning of what I hope will be a beautiful, wonderful blogger-reader relationship, is that I have NEVER considered myself to be “disabled.” I loathe the word, and have a very low tolerance of it. God has given me many talents, the greatest of which I hope you will find to be is writing.
After having graduated from high school from a four-year theatre program, I finally decided to major in journalism, therefore combining my loves of writing and of sharing the truth with others. My absolute goal is to become a broadcast journalist, and I hope I am slowly but surely establishing myself as the firsthand spokesperson for people with spina bifida.
What do you know? I guess I have a pretty good idea of who I am, after all. Life is sure as hell full of surprises.
Having lost my dad’s mom but this past year to Alzheimer’s, I am now struggling internally with the harsh reality that the only grandfather I’ve known in my life, my mom’s dad, is finally losing his long, drawn-out battle with cancer, after about six or seven years. My mom’s mom being the only grandparent I will have left before long, we will be flying to Puerto Rico sometime this weekend, maybe tomorrow, to offer my family one last bit of futile emotional support.
My mom’s parents have eleven grandchildren. I am the oldest of four female cousins, the others being 17, four and two years old. We were as tight-knit as Latino families can get. I admit that I have dealt with my own share of personal medical issues, and, as far back as I can remember, they have always been there for me when I’ve needed them.
Having been born with spina bifida, I have had 18 surgeries from head to toe, and countless hospitalizations and doctor’s appointments. Spina bifida is a separation in the spinal cord which occurs from the spine’s inability to close properly within the first few week’s of a woman’s pregnancy. It is the number one cause of paralysis in children in America. Fortunately, I guess, I can walk with the aid of leg braces and sometimes, a wheelchair.
One point I want to make right off the bat, way at the beginning of what I hope will be a beautiful, wonderful blogger-reader relationship, is that I have NEVER considered myself to be “disabled.” I loathe the word, and have a very low tolerance of it. God has given me many talents, the greatest of which I hope you will find to be is writing.
After having graduated from high school from a four-year theatre program, I finally decided to major in journalism, therefore combining my loves of writing and of sharing the truth with others. My absolute goal is to become a broadcast journalist, and I hope I am slowly but surely establishing myself as the firsthand spokesperson for people with spina bifida.
What do you know? I guess I have a pretty good idea of who I am, after all. Life is sure as hell full of surprises.
posted by Laurita | 10:29 AM
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