Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Other Peoples' Stuff That Hits Close to Home...

MY SEIZURE DOG was written by the then seven year old Evan Moss, who wanted to help raise money for his own seizure dog, Mindy. This story will probably make you shed a tear but I think there is such an important message about the human connection with animals as well as the need for more research and understanding of seizure disorders.
Though the story's focus is, of course, the boy who gets the dog, during the video, my attention was on the mother. What's it like in her head? What thoughts has she had and what do you do with the ebb and flow of good news to bad to best news out of the worst situation? What words has she let fall from her vocabulary and at the end of the day, is there really no end to the fear we have about our children suffering?
In the past year, I've wondered if I need to find a group of parents who are watching their children have seizures and take medication and take different medication and wonder what we would have to say to one another. I've moved to a smaller town in Oregon and don't have the resources that a big city provides. Although, I was somewhat spoiled in a city like Portland where everyone from Hacky Sackers to nail biters has gotten together and formed a group. But I digress. Maybe the best part of Evan's story is that it's happy for the moment. As children, we are taught to look for happy endings but adult life shows us that it's more about happiness out of a moment. Seeking beauty within some drab reality of a given moment takes some work, though. I guess I just need to keep doing that work.
And maybe I'm a little jealous that Evan got published at 7 and I can't seem to even do it at 42.