Watch out dere now. It’s that time of the year again. Today is Sunday and it’s the same things that most of us look forward to seeing happen. Daylight savings time is here again. Today, March Madness is in full effect and so everyone is getting ready for Selection Sunday. We are breaking out our bracketology or getting ready for the NCAA tournament office pool. American Idol is in the home stretch. And everybody is getting ready for the NFL draft. It’s the same old things.
But then, I saw something on TV that made me stop and think. I know this is corny but every now and then I watch a show called “GENE SIMMONS FAMILY JEWELS”. For those of you who don’t know who GENE SIMMONS is, he is a member of the Rock and Roll group, KISS, and is known for his ability to blow fire and his long tongue (i know, i know, TMI). Well, as they focus on the upcoming premier, they show how his long time girlfriend and mother of his two kids finds out she has a lump in her breast. He finds out while he’s preparing for a concert and it’s clearly devastating.
Most of us take for granted how devastating it is when you find out a loved one has a traumatic illness. I have a fraternity brother who honored me by allowing me to be the godfather to his daughter. He and his wife have the bravest and strongest child I’ve ever known because she has gone through 2 liver transplants and is currently awaiting a third. Did I mention that she is only 7 years old? He and his wife are troopers because they have gone through this for a few years.
However, it is a whole different story when you’re going through it yourself. A couple of years ago, a dear friend of mine asked me to represent her mother who’s cancer had returned after several years of remission. As such, I had several heart to heart discussions with her mother and my friend about the Social Security disability process. It really moved my heart because to see my good friend trying to stay strong while her mother was aggressively fighting this disease made me truly appreciate what it means to your loved ones.
When we have to care for our loved ones when they are dealing with a devastating sickness, our hearts hurt because we remember them for the way they were and NOT the way they are. For those of you who don’t know who Merlin Olsen is, he was a football player in the NFL and an actor on the former show “Little House on the Prairie”. He recently died after a long battle with Cancer. And when you have to try and be strong when your loved one is deteriorating before your very eyes, it can be hard.
You’re the one that is there for them when they get up at night because they can’t sleep due to the pain. You’re there to help them remember things when their memory starts to go. You’re the one that is there for them in order to make sure they take all of their medications. You’re the onee that has to get them to their doctor appointments.
So many times, we spend so much time focusing on the person applying for Social Security Disability that we sometimes forget about all of the loved ones who patiently and lovely stand by and give their help, support and encouragement when people are facing their challenges. They are an equally important part of the disability process.
