On Friendship, Family, and Showing Up
Dear Friends,
I had planned to write this week on the topic of the interrelationship between exercise and adventure, however, on my run this morning, it occurred to me that I’d rather share two more poignant life events that have arisen, as is often the case in this uncertain life.
I received such a kind response from many of you after I shared the story of my visit to see my ailing mother back in May. As you may remember, my mother’s health had been declining after a fall last December which resulted in a broken hip. I recounted in the previous communication that one evening when I was visiting with her I left my cell phone charger in her room at the rehab center and did not realize until I had driven all the way back to where I was staying.
In mild frustration, I returned to retrieve the charger just before they locked the front door for the night. As I entered my mother’s room, we had a brief conversation that I thought about again this morning while on my run.
“Who are you?,” my mother asked as I entered her room.
“I am your son Steve.”
“Oh that’s nice, will you be my friend?” she asked as she smiled.
“Of course I’ll be your friend, ” I answered back.
We sat for the next forty-five minutes quietly and comfortably being friends. My mother passed peacefully in her sleep this past Saturday. As I’ve moved through my life this week, I have noticed that, in my grief, the idea of this friendship we had acknowledged that evening, soon before her death, has continued within me as a deep feeling of peace and connection with her.
My friend Tom loves to recognize and talk about experiences with synchronicity. I can’t help but think of the annoyance that I felt driving back to the center that evening and the one minute there was to spare before I would have been locked out of her room for the night without having had the gift of this last conversation.
My mother lived a simple and content life. She enjoyed art and painting, she enjoyed family and conversation and friendship, she enjoyed her cats and she would often say how happy and proud she was of her two sons and two granddaughters. In her I recognize and admire what it is to be a mom.
And as it is with my family, I have also had the privilege of experiencing the amazing mothers and many of their kids in our practice including Brooke Buckland, our amazing osteopath and her son Noah, basketball stand out with a huge smile. Unfortunately, we have not seen Brooke for a few months as she has had to step away from her work with patients to be by Noah’s side as he was recently diagnosed with high-risk Acute lymphoblastic Leukemia. I ask all of you to take a moment to read the note below from Brooke. Here are her words:
You may have seen Noah in the clinic: the tall, gentle giant with the big smile and deep love for basketball. In April everything changed for us when he was diagnosed with leukemia. Watching him trade basketball courts for hospital beds has been the hardest thing I’ve ever had to witness. And yet, he’s faced every step with quiet strength, calm and courage. He has shown more resilience than many adults I know, and I am endlessly proud of him. We are taking things one day at a time, adjusting to a new reality that has required me to step away from work to be Noah’s full-time caregiver. We have set up a GoFundMe to help with the financial strain of the medical treatments and to simply keep our little home running during this time. If you feel moved to help in any way, it will mean the world to us.
With Love and deep gratitude,
Brooke
