Love Begets Love

Until the previous year, Sandra’s parents had been vital, interesting people. Her seventy-five-year-old dad chopped wood for their stove and for those of needy friends. He liked to learn new things, so he took college courses part-time. Sandra’s mother taught a Bible study course and volunteered at a shelter for battered women.

Sandra enjoyed their company and stopped by for coffee every chance she could. But everything seemed to change when her father had a stroke that left him paralyzed on one side. After intensive therapy, he learned to talk again, although he sometimes forgot what he wanted to say. Her seemingly ageless mother crumpled into a fragile, dependent old woman. Now Sandra often had to make herself stop by for coffee.

Still, she lovingly cared for her parents until heaven released them from their struggles forever. Twenty-five years later, when Sandra herself had a stroke, her children, Alex and Audrey, allowed no interruption in their relationship, either. Like their mom had with her parents, they visited every day to share a smile. Love illuminated Sandra’s last days as much as hers had blessed her parents’.