Thank you for your kind remarks...
Yes, I did have a young son die...he was just 15, years old, and died from complications of a very rare and usually incurable form of leukemia...
We had been living in our current place for only 8 months, when he was diagnosed...being as our move was due to being a military move, we were quite fortunate to be posted to Ft. Lewis, Washington, which had a Medical Center, as opposed, to just a military hospital, and actually had a pediatric oncologist on staff, which was a longshot, since the military at the time had only 5 pediatric oncolgist in the army as a whole...so since all that we needed for our sons treatment was right here, and we did not have to relocate while he was receiving treatment...at least he had the stability of a permanent home, as opposed to so many other cancer stricken children that wound be being helicoptered in, with their families, and their families having to take up temporary quarters...
My son lived for 15 months with his disease....he was diagnosed at the very end of the school year, and was never well enough to return to school...he spent 8 months out of those 15, as a Medical Center inpatient...
And yet as sick as he was, as near to death as he was, several different times, he remained optimistic that he would be cured...it was not to be...he had overcome very long odds, there were times when no one in the medical center, thought he would survive different complications that came along, and yet, he always did...the last complication however, was too much to overcome, and he died...
But I have always known, that he believed he would not really survive...there was something about him, that told me that...just a few weeks before he died, he sat me down, and told me, that if things went badly for him, in the upcoming weeks, when he was to have a bone marrow transplant, that I should not let my grief over his death, stop my life from cheerfully going forward...for he knew, for a certainty, that God would care for him, his Lord would lead him home, and once home, he would be happy and cured of his illness...he believed that as surely as he knew or believed anything else...he was more concerned for me, for his dad, and for his little brother, after he died...his wishes for us, is what has helped us go on...and we all know and believe, that when we ourselves die, our son will be there waiting for us, waiting with the Lord...
When my son died, we had his service in the chapel, in the military Medical Center...it was a very large chapel, and yet, it was standing room only...he had touched so many people with his generous spirit, and his love of life, and his love and concern for others...the chapel was filled with friends, and family, and doctors and nurses, and dieticians, and pharmacy personnel, and housekeeping personnel, and just about anyone who could be at my sons memorial service was there...it was as if, the whole medical center was on hold for a brief time, because so many hospital personnel were in the chapel, remembering my son...the most touching people at the memorial service were the other children stricken with cancer, that my son had been with, while he, himself was so ill...most of them, have also since died...childhood cancer, especially during this timeframe, 1985, stole so many of these childrens lives...
My son is buried in a very small cemetary on the California coast, teetering on a cliff, right on the ocean...it is a beautiful spot, where we can go, when we are down in California, visiting family...we go to the cemetary, and spend half the day there, remembering our son, with a smile, as he wished, and not with tears or grief...for we know, he is in a better place with the Lord, he is happy, he is well, and he is waiting for us...
Thank you for asking,
My sympathies on your loss, Mom...may God bless you and keep your son in his loving arms forever.
I know that you son watches over you and I believe our love one visit us offten.
They say if we have the ability to see you would be amazed at how many are in the room with you.
I know when my husband is around his favorit opera comes to mind.
Many blessings for you and your love ones.
I am so sorry for your loss, andysandmikesmom.