The Family Under Stress

"We had our fill of old junk cars and unpaid bills. But our love was clear in the struggling years. Up against the world four young boys and our little girl. We fought life's fears in the struggling years. And hard times came easy and so did the tears. Strong were the ties that bound you and I in the strugglin' years. Time brought success and I always said you'd have the best. But the times we hold dear are the strugglin' years. And when the kids are grown and startin' out on their own, we'll miss them here and the strugglin' years. And hard times came easy...strong are the ties that bind you and I thank the strugglin' years." - Chris LeDoux (Strugglin' Years) 

I love this song by Chris LeDoux! I think it is a great explanation of what married life will be. There are going to be times when it is hard and things will come up that we weren't prepared for, such as, unexpected health problems, car problems, insurance problems, a possible job loss, disability, death, divorce...the list could go on and on. 

A particularly hard time was when I was a senior in high school. I was undergoing some unknown health problems. I didn't know what was going on, it started in my knees and went up into my hip. I thought that was normal because I ran cross country and my knees usually hurt anyway. It continued to spread throughout my body. It got to the point that it took about 30 minutes for me to get out of my bed. A lot of times I was late for my first hour of school. I couldn't raise my hand to brush my hair, and I lost a lot of weight. We weren't sure what was going on. I was put into physical therapy, and I hated it. I was so frustrated because I was doing exercises that were easy, but I couldn't do them. I was suppose to push on the therapists arm, and as I did, he said, "you can start pushing now." I was so weak. It was a long time before we found out what it was. I was after my first track meet of the season, and I had a doctors appointment after that. I went to the doctor and he told me that I had Rheumatoid Arthritis. I was shocked. I thought, I am 18 years old, and I have an old woman's body. When I heard that I automatically felt like I had limitations. I felt like I wouldn't ever be normal and that people would look at me differently. I finished my track season, performing fairly well for my current conditions, and then got put on medication to help. 

I share that experience because it was a difficult time for me and my family. My parents did everything they could to help me. My mom was by my side the whole time, and my dad quietly helped. I never saw my dad cry over me before, but I remember when they didn't know what was going on, his eyes filled with tears. It was a huge financial burden, especially because we had to keep going to doctors. My medicine was $4,000 a month. We couldn't afford that. Fortunately, they were able get us a card that reduced that cost dramatically. 

I am so grateful for my parents and the help and aid they gave me. They were my rocks during that time. That is one of the many struggles we went through, but we have always been blessed. I am grateful for that trial because it brought my family closer and I was able to see the love my family has for us. 

"Our love was strong through the strugglin' years.