The Teenager is back for the holidays and my heart is bursting with pride.
It seems I sent a child off to University in September and he’s come back a man.
Sure, he’s stripped the fridge, freezer and every cupboard bare in a never-ending quest for food. He brought back three loads of dirty laundry, and he’s spending an inordinate amount of time in bed.
But in amongst filling and emptying the washing machine, we’ve had some great chats, in particular one about regrets. He explained he had none at all, despite everything, including growing up with a mum with a serious illness. He felt it only added to his compassion and understanding of what it is to be human.
Blimey. We mulled over some other points, and nope, he has no regrets about anything and he’s enjoyed finding out more about himself these last three months.
What a brilliant attitude to have at such a young age. Isn’t it weird when we find ourselves learning from our children? I thought hard about what he said, and I really do think from this point onwards, I may just adopt this way of thinking. Given the absolute hell of the filling out the PIP form, raking over every single aspect of my life and also reflecting back on this MS journey and more importantly, the journey that me and The Teenager have had together for the last 18 years, it is now time to look forward.
His excitement for the future is infectious. PIP is sent, there’s nothing else to be done apart from prepare for a fight. But that can wait for now. It is more important for me to count my blessings and concentrate on everything that is good in my life, and there are many things. The Teenager, you guys, my friends and so much more.
On that note, I’m off to stock up the freezer again …
Understandably you are proud of him, as I would be if he was mine. Obviously with the MS he’s had more to deal with than the average teenager, so it would have helped him to grow up quickly. He’s grown up knowing that life isn’t all milk and honey and that it is a fragile thing.
See, something good, has come out of your MS – your Teenager with an attitude he may not have had before.
Well done to him and to you.
You’re absolutely right – something good has definitely come out of the nightmare that’s been MS!
Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and let’s hope 2018 is good for all of us 🙂 X
As always great read, glad he’s home for a bit.
Enjoy
Merry Christmas To One And All ?☃️?
And a very merry Christmas to you all too! X
Some years ago my then teenage daughter took part in research at Southampton university to try to establish whether having a parent with MS has a negative impact. The conclusion was that if anything the impact was entirely positive! She too is at Bristol Uni! I totally understand how you feel regarding single parenthood and the unfair world that this disease pushes us into,it has given me many duvet days! I am much older than you and now I look back through all the muddle some mighty fine,independent children have emerged and now grandchildren.
That’s such encouraging research! And your own experience from your kids and grandkids. I really do think he has learned some vital emotional skills 🙂 I’ve always tried to shield him from the darker sides of this illness and ensured he still has a childhood, but inevitably you can’t keep everything hidden. All in all though, I think we’ve done pretty well, considering 🙂 X