I recently received a beautiful gift in the mail. Sent to my home address was an Amex gift card along with a bracelet with a little purple stone and a charm that reads: "be the change you wish to see in the world - Gandhi".
There was a handwritten note attached, with just a few words and it was signed by a smiley face. Thankfully it had a return address so I was able to send a Thank you, but no name, just someone in Pennsylvania. I have no idea who sent it to me, but I put the bracelet on that day and have not taken it off. It symbolizes so much to me. I am honored and blessed that someone I don't know thought about me in such a kind way. This is what I always hoped to do by sharing our story on both this blog and other news media...to share our experiences and struggles with Alzheimer's Disease with the hope that we just might be able to help someone else going through this. I can personally say that it helps to know that you are not alone, and I hope that by sharing our story, I am able to help someone else realize that they are not alone. My other goal remains to raise awareness, which I use every opportunity to do. I hope that by giving other people the strength, they too will speak out so that we CAN change the course of this disease. This is one of only a few diseases, that when diagnosed, the patient knows there is NO HOPE...no chance of a cure. That was the way it was years ago with AIDS and some forms of cancer. Now through research brought about by awareness, those diseases do not always mean a death sentence. Unfortunately, our loved ones never had HOPE.
I am truly humbled by the kindness and interest in our story and I pray that one day we WILL live in a world without Alzheimer's Disease.
There was a handwritten note attached, with just a few words and it was signed by a smiley face. Thankfully it had a return address so I was able to send a Thank you, but no name, just someone in Pennsylvania. I have no idea who sent it to me, but I put the bracelet on that day and have not taken it off. It symbolizes so much to me. I am honored and blessed that someone I don't know thought about me in such a kind way. This is what I always hoped to do by sharing our story on both this blog and other news media...to share our experiences and struggles with Alzheimer's Disease with the hope that we just might be able to help someone else going through this. I can personally say that it helps to know that you are not alone, and I hope that by sharing our story, I am able to help someone else realize that they are not alone. My other goal remains to raise awareness, which I use every opportunity to do. I hope that by giving other people the strength, they too will speak out so that we CAN change the course of this disease. This is one of only a few diseases, that when diagnosed, the patient knows there is NO HOPE...no chance of a cure. That was the way it was years ago with AIDS and some forms of cancer. Now through research brought about by awareness, those diseases do not always mean a death sentence. Unfortunately, our loved ones never had HOPE.
I am truly humbled by the kindness and interest in our story and I pray that one day we WILL live in a world without Alzheimer's Disease.
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