Thanks for sharing your journey with your readers, Will. As I age, I wonder when, and if, dementia or alzheimer's will start to effect me or loved ones. The comparison to a polar expedition is scary, but better to be forewarned so one can be forearmed. I hope your own journey is not so difficult and I'm sure the support of family and friends will ease the pain along the way.
(Norwegian Ronald Amundsen may have been born a Norwegian subject of Denmark but he was born a Norwegian, was a Norwegian when he and his team successfully first sailed the Northwest Passage, was a Norwegian when he and his team were first to the South Pole, and was a Norwegian when he and his team disappeared on a rescue mission in the Arctic, likely dying in a plane crash or soon afterward)
Illness is a journey...it is uphill through all sorts of weather and obstacles. It's never knowing what is awaiting around the corner.
It's always being *on*. Hyper vigilant to every changing scenario. Hard to even wrap your head around on a good day.
But at the end of the journey , and there always is an end, you are left with the questions of what you could've, should've done better...or what you forgot to do...or if you had only....
There is nothing you could've done better. Your love and care shine through even through the heartbreak. We do the best we can under the circumstances of any given day.
Caretakers are sometimes forgotten in the throes of someone's illness/condition.
You are a hero to Bella Will, and you honor her daily with your patience and love. Be kind and gentle to yourself also.
Beautiful and heartbreaking Will. Thanks for sharing your journey in comparison to the grueling winter journey. My work these days brings me in touch with Alzheimer and dementia. I am always struck by how different the diseases strike each family and how that, in and of itself, makes it so challenging. Hope you have lots of support and can make time for a caregivers support group if it’s helpful.
Thinking of you and Bella. Congratulations to Zo and to you all. Hope it’s a celebration filled with love and joy.
Instead of comparing you and Bella’s journey to Cherry-Garrard’s pointless polar expedition of suffering and failure, compare it instead with Ernest Shackleton’s. His expedition was technically also a failure, but the inspiring story of how he and his men managed and survived seems to better mirror what you are going through. His ship was named the Endurance, a name that aptly describes what an Alzheimer’s caregiver must have, and I wish you the same steadfast courage he had in caring for his crew.
Thanks once again Will for your sharing of this incredible horrendous journey that you and Bella are going through. I so admire your courage and love for each other that you are sharing with us. I have a great fear of getting that incredible disease myself as I am 88 & have lost a so much memory for things that I used to think so well about which makes it so embarrassing at times. It helps me to read what you are going through and your strength & I continue to pray for you both. God Bless you both.
Beautiful, Mr. Doolittle. You find the things to be grateful for and that's a lesson for all. Your long walk with Bella is certainly not the ill-fated, badly planned excursion described in the book, no matter how heart-breaking and arduous it is. You will always have the loving memories and your insight, to pull you through.
Thank you, Will, for your sensitivity and openness, for your caring and sharing.
As in any loss, there is always hurt and pain. But you have also shown us the joy and beauty in a loving relationship: holding hands in a walk through the park; together, soaking up the wonders of nature; together, sharing a sumptuous meal; together, celebrating the marriage of a child.
The pain is always there, to be sure, and it ought not be denied or repressed. We will always have it. But the joy and beauty are always there also, and we have to let in the joy and beauty, too.
I also thought of Shackleton....and really so many people who act courageously (and often quietly) with what is difficult and complex in life, persevering despite obstacles, often answering the question you ask: "where do you find consolation when years of effort lead to failure''? Maybe we all have to redefine "failure" and where seeming failure deepens the heart of love and kindness and wisdom Vulnerability is often the gift that opens us. So just to thank you again Will for your openness and love and for giving form to feeling--for inspiring your readers. At the end of Wordsworth's poem "intimations of Immortality," he speaks of loss and says: "to me the meanest (smallest) flower that blows can often bring thoughts that lie too deep for tears." I think: what touches us...and how important it is to be touched.
I remember that little baby too! I'd bring her in for my Sunday shift when Bella was working and put her under my desk to sleep.
Thanks for sharing your journey with your readers, Will. As I age, I wonder when, and if, dementia or alzheimer's will start to effect me or loved ones. The comparison to a polar expedition is scary, but better to be forewarned so one can be forearmed. I hope your own journey is not so difficult and I'm sure the support of family and friends will ease the pain along the way.
Send our congratulations, and best wishes on to Zo and his beloved❤️
Peace and love. ✌️💗
Best wishes to Zo.
Touching column.
(Norwegian Ronald Amundsen may have been born a Norwegian subject of Denmark but he was born a Norwegian, was a Norwegian when he and his team successfully first sailed the Northwest Passage, was a Norwegian when he and his team were first to the South Pole, and was a Norwegian when he and his team disappeared on a rescue mission in the Arctic, likely dying in a plane crash or soon afterward)
Teaching me once again not to ignore the little voice that says, "You should check that."
First: congratulations to Zo ! So happy for him.
Illness is a journey...it is uphill through all sorts of weather and obstacles. It's never knowing what is awaiting around the corner.
It's always being *on*. Hyper vigilant to every changing scenario. Hard to even wrap your head around on a good day.
But at the end of the journey , and there always is an end, you are left with the questions of what you could've, should've done better...or what you forgot to do...or if you had only....
There is nothing you could've done better. Your love and care shine through even through the heartbreak. We do the best we can under the circumstances of any given day.
Caretakers are sometimes forgotten in the throes of someone's illness/condition.
You are a hero to Bella Will, and you honor her daily with your patience and love. Be kind and gentle to yourself also.
Thank you Will.
Beautiful writing, Will. Enjoy the celebration with Zo. ❤️
Beautiful and heartbreaking Will. Thanks for sharing your journey in comparison to the grueling winter journey. My work these days brings me in touch with Alzheimer and dementia. I am always struck by how different the diseases strike each family and how that, in and of itself, makes it so challenging. Hope you have lots of support and can make time for a caregivers support group if it’s helpful.
Thinking of you and Bella. Congratulations to Zo and to you all. Hope it’s a celebration filled with love and joy.
Instead of comparing you and Bella’s journey to Cherry-Garrard’s pointless polar expedition of suffering and failure, compare it instead with Ernest Shackleton’s. His expedition was technically also a failure, but the inspiring story of how he and his men managed and survived seems to better mirror what you are going through. His ship was named the Endurance, a name that aptly describes what an Alzheimer’s caregiver must have, and I wish you the same steadfast courage he had in caring for his crew.
Thanks once again Will for your sharing of this incredible horrendous journey that you and Bella are going through. I so admire your courage and love for each other that you are sharing with us. I have a great fear of getting that incredible disease myself as I am 88 & have lost a so much memory for things that I used to think so well about which makes it so embarrassing at times. It helps me to read what you are going through and your strength & I continue to pray for you both. God Bless you both.
Beautiful, Mr. Doolittle. You find the things to be grateful for and that's a lesson for all. Your long walk with Bella is certainly not the ill-fated, badly planned excursion described in the book, no matter how heart-breaking and arduous it is. You will always have the loving memories and your insight, to pull you through.
Thank you, Will, for your sensitivity and openness, for your caring and sharing.
As in any loss, there is always hurt and pain. But you have also shown us the joy and beauty in a loving relationship: holding hands in a walk through the park; together, soaking up the wonders of nature; together, sharing a sumptuous meal; together, celebrating the marriage of a child.
The pain is always there, to be sure, and it ought not be denied or repressed. We will always have it. But the joy and beauty are always there also, and we have to let in the joy and beauty, too.
Shalom! Peace to you and yours!
I empathize with you. It’s got to be a heartbreaking journey. Prayers for you both.
🥰
I also thought of Shackleton....and really so many people who act courageously (and often quietly) with what is difficult and complex in life, persevering despite obstacles, often answering the question you ask: "where do you find consolation when years of effort lead to failure''? Maybe we all have to redefine "failure" and where seeming failure deepens the heart of love and kindness and wisdom Vulnerability is often the gift that opens us. So just to thank you again Will for your openness and love and for giving form to feeling--for inspiring your readers. At the end of Wordsworth's poem "intimations of Immortality," he speaks of loss and says: "to me the meanest (smallest) flower that blows can often bring thoughts that lie too deep for tears." I think: what touches us...and how important it is to be touched.