In Sickness and In Health

A marriage barely begun
Followed swiftly by a diagnosis
A game changer.

I watch it end a friend's marriage
I feel it erode my own
A helpless loss

Anger filled silences
Self-centered assumptions
Lonely pain, lonely nights

No end in sight, one must go on.
Him to work, me to crumble
Self pity in abundance

Did I ever pity him?
I was "so brave" they said.
What of him?

He works, cooking, laundry
Buys me more than I can imagine
And fabricates things I need.

Puts up with my moodiness
Wipes my butt
And beds me with kindness.

I gripe, nag and beg
Selfishly wanting my old life back
Forgetting all the gifts this new one brings.