I stumbled upon this old note, posted to the list a decade ago, and
decided to post it again.
Subject: spousal support
Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
I'm ready to carve a piece of granite with my
fingernails or do something else as difficult to
show my appreciation for my wife. I have before
stated my appreciation for her support during this
malady, but the recent sharing of tales of less
spousal support has heightened my gratitude.
When I first came home from the hospital, I had
neither the strength nor the flexibility to attend
to my own needs. I was in bed, in diapers, and
wearing a Texas catheter. All of which needed
frequent changes. I could recognize an impending
bowel movement, but I could not resist it. I
remember Betty answering my call in the middle of
the night to come attend to the bedpan and to
clean me afterward. I wonder if I could have been
so uncomplaining if she were the one who was ill.
Even now, almost two years later, her support and
her willingness have not diminished. Thankfully,
the need for such support has almost gone away.
I am so lucky to have married her.
Alton, who intends no hurt to those less fortunate
