Give Kids (and Adults) the World

As a good friend was getting ready to take a very special trip with her husband and 4 year old son I once again began to think about how important it was (and is) to me to make memories with my family. About sixteen months ago, my friend's son was diagnosed with leukemia. His road to recovery is long but the prognosis is good. The family's "new normal" includes things that became my family's "normal" when I was a child and my mom was diagnosed with cancer -- port-a-catheters, steroids, chemo, upset stomachs, etc. This amazing little boy's wish was granted and he was able to take a trip to Walt Disney World, allowing the family to get away and make some new memories. This is what got me thinking!

I remember so much of the mundane, sad, dreary aspects of my mom's illness. She was finally diagnosed in May 1988 with the cancer that had been plaguing her since late 1987. Between May 1988 and January 1989 she suffered greatly and my family's "new normal" became an awful mixture of daily activities a little girl was used to, hospital stays, in-home nursing care, and my dad's first heart-attack. Wouldn't it have been amazing for my mom to have had a wish granted? Not just for her, but for us, too. I have been blessed with an amazing memory, but I have to say there were not that many happy times to be remembered while my mom was ill. What an amazing gift it is to have a wish granted!

I know that my friend was a little apprehensive to go on this amazing trip with her family because she was afraid it would remind her that her precious little boy is really very ill. He is doing wonderfully now, but I suppose there is always fear that things could change. It seems as if the miraculous-ness of the trip, and especially of their lodging accommodations was worth the anxiety my friend experienced. The family stayed at an incredible place called Give Kids the World Village. It sounds like an amazing place filled with love, honor, tender loving care, and fun. I wondered if such experiences were available for adults, like my mom who could benefit from such love, honor, tender loving care, and fun. I was pleasantly surprised to find that such organizations do exist! Here are some that I found: Dream Foundation, The Dream Lives On, One Gift, and Her Heart's Wish. I look forward to learning more about these organizations.