Candle in the Wind

My  mom has been a Parkinson’s patient for the last 20 years. The long and short of it is she has been beating the disease to a T, so subtly and inconspicuously she never lets anyone realize her struggle. But, like in a boxing match, she rises before the final bell rings and plummets her disability to the ground.

There are times when she tires of the constant match and wants some rest and that’s the time her eyes well up with tears.. I think its more the frustration of not being able to match her movement with her thoughts .. the millions of things she wants to do at a single go … take care of her house, her husband  her parents and kids .. teach her students, play the keyboard, exercise. She hates it when her handwriting starts to crawl, but then she picks up her Apple lappy, her trusted companion, and starts typing. She is relentless. She has come up with ways and means to be the more productive than other healthier people her age who take their time for granted. as if telling the disease “ Ha , I still get the better of u don’t I ?”

But the disease is cruel to her at night making her restless and uncomfortable … She has learnt to survive on minimal sleep now and continues her myriad activities even at night. You can find her doing yoga or cleaning the kitchen or solving maths sums at unearthly hours of the night but she isn’t one to stop. Her ipod belts out her favourite songs in the wee hours and she keeps working until sleep takes over. She never displays signs of sleep deprivation which fills one with wonder about her mental strength.

Her life philosophy has been simple and crystal clear since the time I’ve started comprehending. .. It speaks about happiness and contentment in the true sense. She is what she thinks and says.. she knows what is important to her and she values positivity in relationships. She’s never fallen prey to the dark clouds of depression though they must have threatened to cast their shadow.. instead she still has the brightest, most genuine smile I have seen .. one that turns a grey day into a sunny one

The incredible part is she does not need anyone but everyone else needs her. She’s the center of our universe keeping us all together . We need her for the little things and the big , she knows just where to look for things and she has the solution to all our problems.

During her low phases she ticks the time in her head till when she’s on her feet again and like a raging motor she dashes about making up for lost time

It was as if God wanted to test her strength and Im sure hes smiling down at her now.. and I’m sure he’ll keep showing her the way. I know no one else who could have made the disease a part of her life and made it her slave and not the other way around.. Kudos to you mumma. You are my superhero.