A Proud Mom

I'm letting my son, Matt, make this post.  He is in the process of writing his college application essay, and this is what he has written so far.  It really touched me, and I asked him if he minded if I shared it, so here it is!

People can have a profound effect on each other, and can influence each other's lives in ways they don't expect.  People have affected my life greatly, above all, my parents.  They have been there for me since the day of my birth, and now that I am applying for college, they are doing everything they can to help me with applications.  Not only have they influenced my childhood, they have influenced what I want to do with my life.

My parents are both afflicted with neurological disorders.  My mother has fibromyalgia, a horrible disorder which causes crippling pain.  My father suffers from spinocerebellar ataxia, a hereditary disorder which causes the cerebellum of the brain to atrophy.  With it, it takes away fine motor skills and balance, and due to this disease, my father is now in a wheelchair.  I have made it my life's goal to become a neurologist, and hopefully discover cures to these diseases.

Because of my parents' diseases, a great deal of responsibility has been laid on my shoulders.  I take care of them, doing the things they can no longer do.  I cook, clean, drive, and do many other things that they are incapable of.  I attempt to bear the responsibility in stride, but I am human, and it is often hard.  I get angry, though I know it isn't any fault of theirs.  I love them, and the anger passes.  My parents' conditions have rendered them incapable of working.  We live on Social Security Disability, a difficult life.  My brothers and I often go without the things other people our ages have; cell phones, computers, video games.  My parents do the best the can, however, and for that I appreciate them.

I have no idea how my life would be different if my parents were not the people they are, but I do know that I would not be the same person.  I have been shaped by the trials and tribulations of my parents, and am stronger because of the things we all have faced.  For that, I am grateful that my parents are who they are.



I have to tell you that this essay brought tears to my eyes.  Matt may feel that he has been shaped into the wonderful person he is by having us as parents, but we have been blessed a hundred times over by having him as our son.