RE-SPECT = LOOK AGAIN

It is a tough thing to face daily that a loved one is dying right before my eyes. He went from being a man with a spring in his step when I first met him. After more than 2 decades of knowing him, his steps are weighed down with the cares of life. When I first met him his honey colored eyes were alive with hope and now, they are opaque and the light in them significantly dimmed. When I first met him, he had a full hair of beautiful thick, wavy,soft hair. Now his scalp shows through in patches and it feels brittle to my fingertips. A long time ago he never stopped- always wound up tighter than a clock. Now, he needs naps just to stay alive it seems. And they’re not little cat naps; the kind that rejuvenate and nourish the soul. He naps and I fear he’ll one day not wake up at all. He said he wasn’t addicted when we first met. He said he could always quit. Now that she has taken him for good, I see him bound by her oppressive chains and all I can do is weep because there’s nothing else to do for someone who is  deep in the clutches and final stages of addiction.

My anger is gone. I used to be so upset at him for not taking care of himself. Now, I have a newfound respect. I’m looking again and I see a dying person who deserves to be treated with something he never ever received in his whole existence- Dignity.