Today...I am blessed.
I have always been blessed, but today I am especially blessed by God and the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
I had the chance to spend some time with my Mother as she lay in her casket in the funeral home awaiting my Brother, his wife, and their two kids to come and pay their last respects to her.
I arrived early to the funeral home, after running some errands and getting my head in order, as well as crying my eyes out because of Celine Dion's music, especially the song from the Robin Williams Movie Bicentennial Man called "Then you look at me". I'm including the lyric below and God BLESS Celine and her amazing voice which resonates so purely through me. You have to see the movie to understand the impact.
My Mother has been locked behind the doors of Alzheimer's, a ruthless disease that ROBS people of their memories. Those cherished snapshots of this life that we all take in our heads hoping to go to our graves with them in our heads and yet this disease which is RAMPANT among those who have served our country, their spouses and yes even their entire families robs those memories from us so we forget who people are, where they are, what they were in our lives, and eventually it robs people of their abilities to control their bodies, to do things that we all take for granted and yet the amount of money spent on research to cure this disease is...lacking compared to others.
An article written in 2013 stated the following which I find unconscionable:
"Alzheimer’s disease affects more than 5 million Americans. It’s the fifth leading cause of death in the United States overall, and care costs for Alzheimer’s patients exceed $200 billion. But somehow the government hasn’t made research into this disease a top priority."
To our elected officials, I say "Find a way to MAKE IT A PRIORITY" or we're going to find and elect others who will. Our beloved government is ok with spending billions on wars, and putting the real needs of our country on the back burner. I say it's time for a change.
When Seth Rogen, the actor went before the government and spoke on this, his appearance was slightly comical. Well, I am not laughing. I have lost 2 parents who both served this country with HONOR and DISTINCTION. My Father who served 3 tours in Vietnam, and my Mother who was his spouse for 56 years, 27 of those as a NAVY WIFE dedicated to raising a family, being there for Dad when he returned from War, and helping other families who lost their loved ones and never, ever asked for anything in return. This woman was a Saint in my book and Dad's for that matter, but yet this disease came out of nowhere and took her from us. MORE needs to be done to eliminate this disease from existence. More Veterans, their Spouses, their families have this than others. What does that tell me? Something that we're exposed to somewhere along the way during our "duty" is getting this into our bodies and it's robbing us of that which we deserve to keep, our memories, our intellect, our control over that which we do in our lives.
So Government...Laugh at Seth. Laugh at me and I am in your face more than you care to want me there. I am a Veteran of the US NAVY. I also served with HONOR & Distinction, and I intend to let the world know that Alzheimer's & Dementia need to be more of a priority for this NATION to lead the way to finding a cure, and this needs to be focused in on sooner than later.
As I said, this day I am blessed. I got to say farewell & I will see you later to my Mother. I am grateful that I took the time to do this after caring for her needs over these years after Dad's passing. I am honored to be her Son. I am honored to have had the opportunity to be of service to Mom, to Dad, and to others whose families wouldn't give them the time of day when all they wanted was someone to speak with, to share a story with, to be heard. I am blessed, and I thank GOD for this opportunity to share my thoughts, my words with each of you, especially those who may be embarking down a similar path with their loved ones. You are NOT alone. You ARE LOVED, and you have SUPPORT when you need it. Don't hesitate to reach out and ask for time, or for me to listen. I am here for you.
God bless you all, and may your day be as mine is, nothing short of amazing.
Farewell Mama!!! I will see you in heaven when it's time for me to join you and Daddy. Give him my love as well as yourself, and thank you again for the honor of being my Mother in this lifetime. I love you both always.
Your Son,
Michael
** For ANYONE who would like to donate to the Vincenza Murdock Memorial Fund, this money is being used to pay off Mom's final bills and expenses in this lifetime which were not covered by our wonderful government, please go to the following website, and this is legit, it's not a scam as I have no time for being dishonest to people, and Thank you in advance for your assistance:
http://www.gofundme.com/burymom
This is a long road to reach the goal of this campaign. I wish someone like Seth Rogen, or Ellen DeGeneres, or another celebrity who perhaps has had a friend or relative afflicted with this disease to perhaps help, this campaign could end within an hour of them sharing and asking their followers to chip in. Even small donations help. Once this is reached, I can then wind all of Mom's affairs up, and begin a grieving process that I have been waiting to start since Dad passed away in May of 2013.
In advance, thank you very much for all of your support, and for those who have already donated, thank you as well and God Bless You All.
Then You Look At Me - Lyrics. Celine Dion Singer
Laugh and cry
Live and die
Life is a dream we are dreaming
Day by day
I find my way
Look for the song and the meaning
Then you look at me
And I always see
What I have been searching for
I'm lost as can be
Then you look at me
And I am not lost anymore
People run
Sun to sun
Caught in their lives ever flowing
Once begun
Life goes till it's gone
We have to go where it's going
Then you look at me
And I always see
What I have been searching for
I'm lost as can be
Then you look at me
And I am not lost anymore
And you say you see
When you look at me
The reason you love life so
Though lost I have been
I find love again
And life just keeps on running
And life just keeps on running
You look at me and life comes from you
From you