26 days ago Candy got a phone call from a very dear friend... and was at her side within minutes... her daughter was killed at the hands of her daughter's estranged husband in a brutal murder-suicide. So the last several weeks have been spent helping to deal with this tragedy. The memorial service was yesterday, and we were looking forward to putting this chapter behind us and moving on.
But that was until late Thursday night when I got word that my brother's wife shot and killed their 22 year old autistic son and then turned the gun on herself. And Thursday night I did not sleep... and yesterday's memorial service was much tougher than I had thought (before Thursday) it was going to be.
And so I have read the news pieces and I have read the opinion pieces and I will not post any of them here, but if you want to read them just google my brother's name, Lester Hodgins. They are easy to find.
One of the things that stood out in the opinion pieces was a mention of the options for adult autistic children, one of them being the adult facilities available to them. It wasn't a very nice picture. And I immediately was taken in my mind to Eastern Europe and what happens to the orphan children there with Down Syndrome and the facilities that they are placed in, and the horror they live in.
And that adds to my sleeplessness...
Notes from "Papa" was never supposed to be a D/S blog, but it was started because of Reagan's birth and D/S may always be a major sub theme... mostly it is supposed to be thoughts and occasional wisdom from the older generation...
So, what can you do? You can click on the link for Reece's Rainbow and do something to help out there...
You can go and learn more about Autism and find a way to help there...
You can pray for our family as we work through this very difficult time...
Scott you and Candy are both in my prayers. We've had a hard last two months, between us. Know that I am there for you as you have been there for me. God's blessings my friend.
ReplyDelete