3 Years

3 Years

Yesterday was the 3 year anniversary of Waverly's diagnosis. This milestone did hurt as deeply as the others. It may be because Matt is out of the country and I have been busier than usual. I didn't want to remember the day our lives were turned upside down. Instead, I want to take a moment to thank all of you for following our story, for taking an interest in Waverly & Oliver. Thank you for joining us on our journey and for supporting us in so many ways. I hope that Waverly & Oliver have made a lasting impact your life. I hope they have inspired you to be thankful for the health of your own children and to have compassion on those children who have special needs.

I can't believe it has been 3 years...

Comments

Anonymous said…

thinking of you.
jessy

March 22, 2011 at 9:39 PM

pknelson said…

Shannon,
Your children have definitely made an impact on my life. I carry them with me everywhere. May the Lord continue to give you strength and peace. You are a wonderful and inspiring mother!

March 23, 2011 at 1:45 PM

Joanne Huff said…

Hi Shannon,

The anniversary can be such a tough day, so I'm glad you were kept busy throughout it. I've found that can help an awful lot. Love to Oliver and Waverly from us. Thinking of you always, & especially this week! Joanne

March 23, 2011 at 3:18 PM

Welcome to Holland

By Emily Perl Kingsley

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland.""Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.