Yupo Hybiscus 8x10 watercolorWe got a call from Primary Children's Medical Center on Friday. Someone had tickets to the Hanna Montana Concert that they wanted to donate to kids from the hospital. They asked if Jimmy would like to go, of course Jimmy was excited and said yes! I was not even sure he knew who Hanna Montana was but he immediately started singing "Best of Both Worlds" and dancing around. He was given 2 tickets for the show (for him and a parent) he took his dad. while he was there they fed him very well and they gave him a Nintendo gameboy DS which is very cool for him, he is stuck on the bus to and from his school (Utah School for the Blind) for over two hours a day.
However, it is not so cool for his brothers. Jimmy's two oldest brothers have really been wanting a Nintendo DS for over year now, my 13 year old has even been mowing lawns all summer and saving his money and almost has enough to buy a DS, and Jimmy comes home from a free concert with one. It does cause a little resentment and jealousy. It also causes a little paternal distress. Thankfully Jimmy announced that this DS is for everyone to share, he just wants it for the bus ride and everyone else can take turns playing it. He is a pretty cool kid sometimes.
It just reminds me of how hard it is to bee the sibling of a kid with cancer. First of all when your sibling has cancer there is all the jealousy from the gifts and attention your sibling gets, when my boys go trick or treating people will give hand fulls of candy to Jimmy and just one piece to his brothers. My older boys can usually understand this but it is really hard for my younger boys. Then there is all the worry and sorrow you feel for your sibling you have to watch him suffer and there is nothing you can do about it. Also the extra responsibility, my older boys suddenly had to become "substitute parents" when their Mom and Dad where at the Hospital all the time and they couldn't complain to their parents because their parents were't home. When we were home we were so emotionally drained that we Were no good. My boys started making Jokes about mom crying all the time and I thought I had hidden it so very well. Then when your sibling has cancer you don't know what is going on, we thought we had been trying to keep our kids informed but we were also trying to protect them, so we didn't tell them when we thought Jimmy wasn't going to make it. My older boys somehow know we were not telling them everything.
How does a kid handle something like that? Well my oldest two boys, then 13 and 11 years old went from being straight A students to D and F students. My oldest started having migraine headaches from the stress and my second oldest started worrying about the future, constantly asking if there was there something we didn't tell him. My 7 year old went from being the most generous caring child to being mean, spiteful and angry all the time. Jimmy's brothers are finally settling back into their lives and getting back to normal. So when we are faced with this possible recurrence one of my first thoughts was to worry about what this will do to Jimmy's brothers.
However, it is not so cool for his brothers. Jimmy's two oldest brothers have really been wanting a Nintendo DS for over year now, my 13 year old has even been mowing lawns all summer and saving his money and almost has enough to buy a DS, and Jimmy comes home from a free concert with one. It does cause a little resentment and jealousy. It also causes a little paternal distress. Thankfully Jimmy announced that this DS is for everyone to share, he just wants it for the bus ride and everyone else can take turns playing it. He is a pretty cool kid sometimes.
It just reminds me of how hard it is to bee the sibling of a kid with cancer. First of all when your sibling has cancer there is all the jealousy from the gifts and attention your sibling gets, when my boys go trick or treating people will give hand fulls of candy to Jimmy and just one piece to his brothers. My older boys can usually understand this but it is really hard for my younger boys. Then there is all the worry and sorrow you feel for your sibling you have to watch him suffer and there is nothing you can do about it. Also the extra responsibility, my older boys suddenly had to become "substitute parents" when their Mom and Dad where at the Hospital all the time and they couldn't complain to their parents because their parents were't home. When we were home we were so emotionally drained that we Were no good. My boys started making Jokes about mom crying all the time and I thought I had hidden it so very well. Then when your sibling has cancer you don't know what is going on, we thought we had been trying to keep our kids informed but we were also trying to protect them, so we didn't tell them when we thought Jimmy wasn't going to make it. My older boys somehow know we were not telling them everything.
How does a kid handle something like that? Well my oldest two boys, then 13 and 11 years old went from being straight A students to D and F students. My oldest started having migraine headaches from the stress and my second oldest started worrying about the future, constantly asking if there was there something we didn't tell him. My 7 year old went from being the most generous caring child to being mean, spiteful and angry all the time. Jimmy's brothers are finally settling back into their lives and getting back to normal. So when we are faced with this possible recurrence one of my first thoughts was to worry about what this will do to Jimmy's brothers.
1 comment:
I am really grateful that you are taking the time to write in your blog -- I feel more connected even though we don't talk enough. I hope that the boys hang in there. We think of your family and pray for you often!
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