Going Forward

Since publishing my most recent entry, Into The Misty Fog, I've wrestled with whether I should make our life with Alzheimer's the focus of this blog. While that may be the case in the future, I've decided not to do so at this time.

My reason is rather simple-Regina is more than her Alzheimer's, and so is our life together. That is not to minimize her condition, nor to diminish the impact of it on our lives, but rather to recognize and appreciate the rich blessings we enjoy.

For instance, this past Sunday morning, she rode to church with a friend since I'd left home much earlier, as is my Sunday custom. She found her place in her Sunday School class and then she made the rounds in the sanctuary before Worship. During the service, she turned to the Scripture readings in her Bible. I watched her stand with the rest of the congregation and recite the timeless truths of The Apostle's Creed. She sang the songs, prayed along with everyone else, and stayed awake and alert during my sermon (that takes some doing!). It was business as usual, a wonderful morning spent with our beloved church family.

Later that afternoon, we took the truck to Dairy Queen and had a Sunday drive around our Middle Georgia countryside. She spooned her Choco Extreme Blizzard and pointed out the colors and splendor of peach trees blooming, of emerald grass growing lush, of azaleas springing to life in scattered yards. Once I finished my shake and she scraped every last drop of Blizzard from her cup, we held hands like teenagers and rode in companionable silence. That nasty word that begins with "A" was never mentioned.

So, I'm sure I'll refer sometimes to our journey and to her battle because, sadly, it's a part of our life today. But that's not what I want to dwell on. Doing so might cause me to miss the moments and blessings, big and small, that God provides us day by day. Such tunnel vision would fail to take notice of the many ways in which He is at work in our lives and in our life together, and it might blind me to how the Lord wants to use us in this very time and place.

After all, I really do believe God is bigger than Alzheimer's. A whole lot bigger, in fact.