Snapshots of Dementia: At Just the Right Time
Tom uses his trumpet to draw people to the area where our mission team would present a gospel-based drama, San Jose, Costa Rica, 2014. A few years ago, I lived a much different life in a different place than the one I have right now. Living near Orlando, Florida, where Tom served as a worship pastor, I worked as a freelance writer and editor as I do now, but since Tom was the primary breadwinner, it didn’t matter that my income went up and down with the assignments. As my children grew, I traveled, often to teach at Christian writers conferences across the United States. But the travel I enjoyed most was a luxury I no longer have: going overseas to serve in missions and write the story of those trips, either in online blog format or in print. I consider any assignment that combines my love for young people, prayer, missions, and writing a huge win, and these trips, designed to give students a short-term missions experience, provided all of that. Once, I brought Tom along on a trip to Costa Rica; he had led international mission trips with the various churches we had served, but we had never gone together before—a bonus blessing. Another time, I had the opportunity to serve alongside our youngest daughter in Panama for the final ten days of her five-week trip, another bonus blessing. At least for right now, the international travel is no more. The up-and-down income is no more. But the blessings of those trips continue, largely in the form of relationships. Thanks to those trips, I have friends across the U.S., Canada, and Latin America (where all of my mission trips took place). And those friends—many of whom were high school or college students when we met—continue to encourage me today. What does this have to do with dementia? A lot. Not only has Tom’s life changed with the onset of his disease, but mine has too—in the ways listed above and more. I tend to live on the side of hope and not discouragement. But as his disease progresses, I do have moments, even seasons, of concern. Not long ago, my mother had some health struggles at the same time as I saw some sudden declines in Tom. I found myself in need of extra rest, and at first I couldn’t figure out why. But before long, I realized: The internal stress was wearing me down. I didn’t find an immediate fix for my situation, but the habits I already have in place kept the issues from escalating. God also provided help in ways I had not expected: Understanding words from family members. A special opportunity to reach beyond my problems...
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