I'm the layout editor for an online journal. One of the publishers that I work with has advanced Parkinson's Disease. Every issue his condition has worsened, but he still wants to be part of the journal and we still would like him to be involved.
Today I spent several hours on the phone with him, making his editing changes. He is difficult to understand, but is definitely understandable. I could tell he was trying very hard to be clear and I know he was having a challenging time. His sister was going to come and help on his end but she had been unable to make it.
I was able to understand him, but I had to put all my focus on what he was saying to do so. At the end, he apologized for being difficult to understand. I told him I didn't have a problem understanding him and that if he wanted to do this again for our next round of edits, he didn't need his sister from my perspective.
Then he told me, "it's very tiring for me." I had been focused for several hours on my end and I was tired. He had been working for some time beforehand to be ready and had then been worn out just from the phone conversation.
It's hard to appreciate what we have sometimes until we see a different perspective. I'm impressed by his perseverance and humbled by his determination to continue on with the physical challenges in his way.
The Big Boy Update: This morning I got the Starbucks breakfast sandwich my daughter and I like to share on the way to school. When I asked my son if he wanted some, he said no. He told me that he did like sandwiches, just like Prince Hans did. Again, another Frozen reference. There is one line in one of the songs about sandwiches and he's picked up on it from when we listen to the soundtrack.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: My daughter likes to play with Ghi Ghi, Gah Gah and Pahmer with her brother. They get rescued a lot of the time, but sometimes they participate in cooking or other adventures outside.
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