Resources
Bible verse for the year: Every year since 1979 I’ve searched for a Bible verse for the year. In January I write the verse in the front of my Bible, memorize it, hang it in several places in my home and at work, and study the chapters around it. Often I stand amazed at how the verse becomes the mainstay for facing the challenges for that year.
Barbara Johnson: The first months living with Gary after his release from the mental hospital, a friend gave me Stick a Geranium in Your Hat and Be Happy, by Barbara Johnson. I read the book in one night, laughing and crying. Then I searched for other books by Barbara. She faced many of life’s challenges, but her Erma Bombeck voice and knowledge of Scripture helped me find peace in my unsettled world. Living with someone who had mental illness tended to make me feel that I was the crazy person.
Also: Don’t Sing Songs to a Heavy Heart, by Kenneth C. Haugk, Ph.D. (a Stephen Ministries book).
A listening friend: God gave me a gift when He brought Lauri into my life after Gary left the mental hospital. She became my listening friend, one I could trust, someone who didn’t judge me. She let me cry, scream, yell, be mad at Gary and even at God. But when I said the wrong things, she spoke up.
Years later, after my husband’s diagnosis with appendix cancer, Psuedomyxoma Peritonei (PMP), I searched everywhere for a caregiver book to help me deal with Gary’s terminal diagnosis. Because I found nothing, I wrote Capsules of Hope: Survival Guide for Caregivers. Caregivers are often overlooked. The patient receives cards, letters, and visits. Caregivers need support, hugs, cards, and room to breathe.
— Katherine J. Crawford