Bambi's Reflections

Our Battle With Diabetes: Bambi's Story

UPDATE: On January 19, 1999, our son Michael, died from this horrible disease. He was 32 years old and died much as he lived with courage, strength and dignity. These qualities live on in his beloved son, Tyler. He died in his mother's and father's arms surrounded by the people he loved. We miss you so much, Mike.

I wrote the following poem for Michael the day before he died. He had been on a ventilator for 9 days. We requested that it be removed. We wanted our son to be allowed to make his own decision about continuing on life support. All of us wanted one last chance to tell him we loved him and let him say what he needed to before letting go. We got so much more than we had requested...we got 1 whole, beautiful winter day.

"Look, Daddy, that man hasn't got a leg!" With those words echoing in our ears, we followed our 32 year old sons' wheelchair out of the hospital. Thus, we began this new chapter in our lives.

I looked at Mike, and there were tears in his eyes, but we all avoided talking about it. She was only a curious little child, and children are brutally honest.

Bambi's Story
is dedicated to
My Family

I'm a wife, mother and grandmother, from Northern Michigan. We live on a well known fishing river near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The river is a source of peace for all of us. A place to reflect, a place to think.

Why have I chosen to share our very painful and personal story with you? Somewhere, out there on the net, is another parent or child facing this disease. It is my hope that our story will help them.

I was 17 and deeply in love when I married my Prince Charming. Like the fairy tale, I thought we would live happily ever after, but life is not a fairy tale. Though still in love with my Prince, we have fought our share of dragons during our 36 years together. The most dangerous one is named DIABETES, and it is a fierce opponent! Both my husband and son are insulin dependent diabetics. My husband developed it 25 years ago. Our son was 12 when it struck. In the past 3 years, he has lost his sight, his kidney function and finally, 2 weeks ago, his right leg. I would love to see a cure for this miserable disease.

We would finally be making our big move "Up North" the following weekend, and had been camping across the street from our new home. Mike brought his best buddy up and they had been having a ball fishing, swimming and pigging out at the canoe livery at the corner. Mike had been up all night going to the bathroom. My husband got out the test strips, and gave him a jar. "I'll just check and make sure there isn't any problem", he said. I could see the same look of pain and concern on his face as I had. By the color of the test strip, we both knew something was wrong. "Jim", I said,"Where's the closest hospital?" We all tried not to believe what was so obvious...our son was developing the same disease that had attacked Jim. "This isn't fair!", I thought to myself as we raced to Traverse City.

We have lived on this beautiful piece of the river for close to 20 years. Sitting around a campfire is a good way to get to know people well. Perhaps it is the smell of the wood burning or the quiet sound of the river as it passes by, but there is no other place on earth that offers this contentment.
At the mouth of the Platte River, you can see Sleeping Bear Dunes in the distance. Normally, the mouth is teaming with people out enjoying this unique swimming and boating experience. Lake Michigan also offers incredible fishing. We've spent many a happy time out trolling for the 'big one'. The tourist season is over now, and all of the 'natives', as we call ourselves, are awaiting the first snows of winter.


No, the Platte River doesn't look like this, yet.




While I work on "my story", why not check out the link below to get your own 20MB of free webspace?

www.fortunecity.com












 My interests:
  • Diabetes/Kidney Failure/Dialysis/Amputation
  • Books
  • Computers/Technology
  • Conservation/Environment
  • Theatre
  • Cooking
  • Irish Culture
  • Music: Country, Folk, Broadway Musicals, Old Time Rock & Roll, Celtic
  • People
  • Natural Sciences
  • News/Current Events
  • Animals
  • Philosophy
  • Photography
  • Politics
  • Sports: Ice Hockey & The 1997-98 Stanley Cup Champions- The Detroit Red Wings
  • Travel
  • Web Publishing/Design
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Do you want to learn more about juvenile diabetes?


Do you want to find great Christmas grafics? Check out Ace of Space at http://www.aceofspace.com
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