Blue Christmas

Hello Sweetheart,

It will soon be Christmas.  Last night Tyler, Erin and I went to St. Marks for a “Blue Christmas" service.  I cried of course.  I still cry, but not as often as I used to.  Most times I can sit through church without crying, but this service was meant for grief.   I left church feeling better, and that is good.  Pastor Lori mentioned ALS and talked about a lot of things -  where we suspect she may have been talking about you.

I wish you had been able to go to church there Bill – They are good folks, and you would have been comfortable.

 

I was remembering some of our Christmases during the years we knew each other.  You always loved Christmas, but said it was because I loved it so much.  ....We always said we were not going to give each other anything, but we almost always did anyway. So many memories ...more than most people get.  Remember the year with the deer tracks in the driveway after we went on our Santa search?

I am having trouble writing more Bill -  I love you  and I miss you so much ... Christmas was always special for us and even when we did not have much, it was so special.

Love you sweetheart – always have, always will.

Christmas Memories

Christmas was a wonderful time for the Haagenson kids growing up.  There wasn't always a lot of money, but Mom and Dad always made sure we had a good Christmas.  We had all the usual traditions with stockings, food, a tree (or 3) with our little ornaments and the same nativity set every year.

When I was a kid, every year my dad would bring home the crew cab truck.  That was a big deal then when you didn't see them all over the place.  Then we would get in the truck and they would take me around looking for Rudolph's nose up in the sky.  We would come home to all kinds of presents.  One year, we even came home to find deer tracks down the driveway.  What a memory!

Was it all perfection?  Probably not.  I am sure there were years my folks argued about money or things didn't go just as they had planned, but I'll bet not one of the three of us can remember knowing that.

Merry Christmas in heaven, Dad.  It is just not the same hear without you.  Just know that ALS did not destroy who you were in my eyes.  If anything, it made you even bigger!  We will do our best this year, because the little kids need to have a great Christmas too!  That would be important to you.

Love, love, love you eternally!



Resources

If you found our blog and are a PALS, caregiver, family member or friend, we are glad you are here!  We are far from experts.  We just know how this walk feels and how it went for our dad and husband.  We would like to share some excellent resources for information and ways to get involved.  I am sure there are many, many more.  Here are just a few:

Your Local ALSA Chapter . . . Here in SD, our closest chapter office is in the Twin Cities and they head up the MN, ND and SD Chapter. . . http://webmn.alsa.org.  They not only give money to research, but also have great access to loan pools for equipment as well as staff that provide emotional support.

Your local Muscular Dystrophy Association.  They have a section dedicated to fighting ALS!

Team Gleason www.teamgleason.org.

Brigance Brigade www.brigancebrigade.org.

The Packard Center at Johns Hopkins www.alscenter.org.

The Caroline Rober Blog . . . My family found their blog very helpful. www.carolinerober.com.