Carol
Follow the links on the left for more about Carol. Below is a picture of her being
blessed by Pope John Paul II. The Pope was dealing with his own health issues at the time
and stopped giving public audiences just a few weeks after seeing Carol.
Carol's last letter
Carol "wrote" the following letter shortly after her benefit concert. By that time she had
lost nearly all of her communication skills. She dictated one character at a time to Annie
who typed it. It is the ability to express oneself like this that we are trying to preserve by
writing Carol's Song.
Dearest Kate:
I loved your message and I prefer people to be frank with me. I'm getting very sick and I
know my days are numbered. But I have seen so much beauty in people. All my needs
have been met and my circle of Carolers continues to grow. Friends actually complain
they are not called to help more. My social calendar has not changed. This awful mess
has brought out the best in people.
A man from the library who I barely know visited me at hospicare and told me I was
missed by so many people. He said do I have any idea how much people love me. He
said circulation is not the same without my cheerful smile. Then he hugged and kissed
me.
People at Cornell have donated so much sick time that I continue to get full paychecks.
HR said I had enough for a year! In February, when Paul was having a meltdown, I
wrote the following on my board - he was so moved that he wrote it down. I'm glad he
did as a reminder to me. I think the words were inspired by God.
It's easy to be faithful when life is sweet. It's so important we don't lose our faith. I
don't understand any of this, but I don't want to be angry anymore. The love we have
here which is so much, pales next to Gods love. If I have to go, I go surrounded by Love,
to Love.
Saturday night's concert was incredible. (Love Notes) The church was full and I received
a standing ovation. Fifty performers came to share their talent and they played the song I
wrote called "Autumn Breezes". I wrote three vocal arrangements, and Mark Simon
wrote the instrumental arrangements. So there would be lots of harmonies. Mark has a
tape of my singing all three parts.
Annie is a good caretaker. I find her presence very comforting. Mom and Dad have been
great too. The Carolers are now 101 strong.
I will be soon be using my communication device. And then I'll know the real meaning
of patience, since I'll be having to select each letter to form a sentence. Already my witty
banter is reduced to words like "water", "spit cup" and "need to pee". Drooling has
become major problem.
I'm on my fifth drool med they say I'm to try it for 2 weeks. The drooling makes me sick
and causes me to choke. Botox injections are the last resort. But then I deal with dry
mouth and throat and that's no picnic either. So the constant drool slowly making me
crazy and limits what I can do. I'm not in much pain and I'm thankful for that.
My friends take their spitcup duty with love and humor.
So I'm signing off for now and I love you more than words can say.
Love Carol
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