BIll, my father-in-law is a kind, gentle soul who loves his family and is loved by everyone who meets him. He is the grandkids' favorite Pop-pop who used to let them throw him in the pool, wrestle, play make believe; everything one can hope to have in a grandfather. But this is a story of the past.
Barbara Lea, his first wife (childhood sweetheart and great love)--my husband's mom--died of lymphoma when she was just 21 years of age and my husband was 18 months old. Bill subsequently remarried and had two more children; but Bill was so devastated by his loss, he rarely spoke of Barbara Lea to my husband. So he grew up never really knowing his mom. Of all the bad aspects of this horrible disease, the one small light is that as Bill's dementia worsens, he goes back in time to a period of great happiness for him. That time being married to Barbara Lea and taking care of their baby boy together. Bill has been telling my husband stories of his mom and their life together. I see the joy not only in my father-in-law's eyes as he remembers her, but I see the joy in my husband's eyes as he finally gets to know his mom.
Bowie, MD