When kids get sick, parents agonize. Sleep deprivation and schedule disruptions are draining. Worse yet, we empathize with our child’s discomfort almost viscerally. Perhaps we, too, end up sick.
The other night, I awoke panic-stricken to the sound of my young son, in a dead sleep, choking on heavy chest mucus. I sprinted in on tiptoe, convinced in my sleepy delirium that he might have aspirated or suffocated. Of course, he was fine.
The next day, a friend described to me a tragic case of another young boy (whom she knows and loves dearly) with brain cancer. I was struck by how childhood illness, of any kind – be it colds or cancer – feels so threatening. We love our children with such intensity that even faint shadows of loss – high fevers or croupy coughs – highlight our human ephemerality.
Kyle, the young boy with brain cancer, has a Web site that beautifully illustrates how to treasure each moment, even in the midst of devastating illness. www.kyleroger.blogspot.com
His family’s courage and example yields an important lesson for all of us: celebrate today with our children, while we can.
Submitted by Kandy

February 2nd, 2009 | Category: Metro Parent