Jerry

Today is my father-in-law's birthday. It has been over a year since we have seen Mark's parents, which makes me very sad. We sang Happy Birthday to the answering machine this morning. Mark's mom called back later saying he had enjoyed the message. Closed head trauma has been a cruel lesson for us to learn about the past few years. Mark's dad was a brilliant emissions lab coordinator at Ford for over 30 years. His plan had been to teach at Michigan Tech, his alma mater, after retirement. Four strokes, multiple surgeries with stints relieving pressure on his brain, and too many medication trial and errors later, and a terrible fall on the ice have been some of the challenges he has faced since Nathan was born. He always showed generosity to the extreme with us. He sent money while we were both in school, installed a laundry sink I didn't know I needed, brought countless wheeled vehicles for the kids from Michigan, visited bearing 2 bushels of peaches, took us to Disney World...too much to list. I am grateful for his giving spirit. While I am so blessed to have three of my grandparents still living, Mark has lost all of his. My parents have been able to visit more frequently and Mark's mom bravely made the trip to TX once last May. For us to visit is more complicated than I can explain, but it breaks my heart that my kids and Mark are missing precious time with his family. It is so hard to know what to do and how to help from so far away. Both Mark's parents are in my thoughts and prayers frequently. I hope we can see them again very soon. Happy birthday, Jerry. We love you.