The empty nest and an unprepared parent. by Sharlene MacLaren There is something to be said for the realities of the empty nest syndrome and its deep sense of loss. I experienced it and can attest to its validity. My husband and I had successfully raised two wonderful daughters. One had already left “the…
Read moreCategory: Home and Family
Recognizing Heart Defects in Children
by Brooke Keith According to the American Heart Association, for every one thousand babies born, eight will have some form of congenital heart defect. That’s approximately thirty-five thousand babies each year. Sometimes detecting the signs of heart defects in a child can be difficult. Even a doctor may not be able to identify certain…
Read moreNicky: A Life and a Legacy
A brief, struggling life has a lasting impact. by Sondra Brunsting From the moment of conception, he entered a combat zone, every cell of his body at war with toxic poisons, imperiled by an inadequate supply of oxygen and faulty nutrition. His was the womb of compromise, more than a warm cocoon in which…
Read morePlace of Sacrifice
Giving up what is dearest in life togain what is most important. by Terry Arries Christianity is a farce, I raged silently as I bent over my little girl’s crib. I watched my exhausted baby sleep — my precious little girl, Kim, whose hair glinted gold in the sunlight and whose eyes rivaled the…
Read moreMy Little Extra
What a child with Down syndrome has taught his mother. by Barbara Curtis My son Jonathan has a little extra. A little extra enthusiasm, a little extra innocence, a little extra charm. Oh, and did I mention an extra chromosome? The one on the twenty-first pair that inspires so much fear in parents-to-be. I…
Read moreLove Big Enough to Share
Gaining more through letting go. by Mary Roedema as told to Sharon M. Knudson “I think I know who Kristin’s birth mother is.” These words hurtled at me during a telephone call from my new friend, Pam. My daughter, Kristin, had become best friends with Pam’s daughter, and she’d called our house asking for…
Read moreI Couldn’t Change My Son
by J. Grant Swank, Jr. When my wife and I adopted Jay, he was two-and-a-half months old. The only details we knew about his birth parents were some medical specifics provided by his birth mother to the social worker. Bringing Jay into our family was such a joy. We were rightly proud the first…
Read moreLessons from Shela
We’re never too old to learn from our children. by Lettie Kirkpatrick Burress “Your daughter has a terminal muscle disease. She will never walk or gain strength but will weaken progressively. She has only six months to a year to live.” This pronouncement came from a doctor on Shela’s first birthday. As it turned…
Read moreHurricane John
by Marcia Alice Mitchell Fierce wind bowed the tree tops and buffeted the vines that grew against our house. I snuggled in our warm living room and watched Hurricane Carol destroy the familiar and redesign our street to a new beauty. At age eleven I loved storms, but this was my first hurricane. Before…
Read moreHow Autism Changed My Life
A mother helps others by helping her son. by Laura Corby as told to Genetta Adair I’m not the same person I was eight years ago. That’s when my son with autism, Chad, was born. Although my husband, Wayne, and I had already experienced an autism spectrum disorder with our firstborn, Lexi, we hadn’t…
Read more