I shook hands years ago with the late Carroll Campbell, Jr., former governor of South Carolina, and never dreamed he would succumb to Alzheimer’s disease.
Before he served as governor of S.C. (1987-1995), Campbell visited the then-headquarters of Bigelow-Sanford, the carpet manufacturer I worked for in Greenville, S.C., during the early 1980s.
“Hello, I’m Carroll Campbell,” he said, extending his hand. Handsome, trim and well-groomed, he wore a tie and sports coat and stood probably no more than 5 ft.-8 inches tall.
“Good to meet you, sir,” I said, shaking his hand and giving my name as I stood near my desk.
Elizabeth Campbell Tatum, one of Campbell’s four younger sisters, talked about her brother’s last days in an article Chris Shipman wrote for “The Greer Citizen” (May 15, 2008).
Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder named for German physician Alois Alzheimer, who first described the disease in 1906. It destroys brain cells, affects memory and is the seventh-leading cause of death in the U.S. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of “dementia,” a term used to describe a group of brain disorders.
People noticed changes in Campbell in the late 1990s, but he wasn’t diagnosed with Alzheimer’s until Oct. 2001. As the disease progressed in him, he grew agitated when his wife wasn’t near him. He eventually had to live in a “home.” His sister Elizabeth said it was strange and sad to see her brother in a home at a young age. He was only 65 when he died in December 2005.
“He was brilliant, and it wiped him out,” Elizabeth said. “There’s no amount of money or fame that can stop it.”
I suppose most of us believe God can heal any disease. “Nothing is impossible with God,” many of us say. Someone noted, however, that healing, at best, is only temporary.
A New Testament writer penned these words: “And as it is appointed unto man once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). “The Bible in Basic English” offers this translation of that verse: “And because by God's law death comes to men once, and after that they are judged.”
Genesis 3:19 states, “For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” The King James Version of that passage sounds poetic, but its meaning is stark. God told Adam that he’d been formed from the dust of the ground and that he and Eve brought death to themselves by disobeying God and eating forbidden fruit. Adam’s sin brought depravity and death to us, his descendents.
As a child, I used to think Jesus would probably return to rapture the Church before I died – and I would escape death!
My parents may have hoped to see Jesus return before they went “the way of the grave.” But both of my parents, Eva and J.B., lived 67 years and died a little over three months apart in 1989.
My mother battled cancer but seemed to keep a positive attitude during her ordeal. My father retired and helped my mother (who died first) during their last few years. Mother told me they became closer during that time than they’d ever been.
Not long before her death, Mother told me, “It doesn’t seem like it’s time to go.”
I’ve heard of saints who seemed to know when they neared “departure times.” I reasoned that Mother was fairly young and maybe it was that “positive attitude” she usually exhibited that caused her to say, “It doesn’t seem like it’s time to go.” A few days later, she knew (I feel she knew, though she didn’t say so) that her time to go had come. And it did.
I don’t know when my time “to go” will arrive, but I like these words penned by William Jennings Bryan: “Christ has made of death a narrow, starlit strip between the companionships of yesterday and the reunions of tomorrow.”
Whatever happens, I have placed my trust in these words of Jesus: “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).
2 comments:
I think I responded to this writing in a direct e-mail, Steve. I appreciate you sharing these words of hope. Touching how you weave the generations into our present need for resurrection hope.
Resurrection is actually our ONLY hope! How many soldiers have found that out in their 'fox hole'! While I have never fought in a war, I have heard the war stories from friends and family members who did. My uncle was liberated as a Prisoner of War from one of the German POW Camps during the last days of the war. He never, ever mentioned his treatment at that camp. He did tell the family members of his horrible treatment, and this story was passed along to us younger kids - at least the parts my Daddy can remember. Herman was forced to peel mountains of potatoes for the German guards to eat, while the POWs were fed soup made from the peelings, with one crust from the left over bread from the Germans' meal. When he was rescued he weighed around 80 lbs. He said that had he not been rescued when he was, he would have never come home alive. He was voluntary custodian of our First Presbyterian Church many years after that. He could often be found up in the attic of the church. I think now that was his quiet place to pray and find peace for himself. I still visit the attic occasionally myself, just from kinship to my great uncle. First Pres is a great place to be on Sunday mornings when it is filled with God's People. It is also a great place to be on Saturday afternoon when nobody is there, so I can sit quietly and meditate on my rich family history of loving God and Presbyterianism. I am the seventh generation of Wakefields in First Presbyterian, Greer, and my family gave the land for Nazareth Presbyterian Church in Moore, SC. There have been big wars and small wars all over the world, in which my family members and friends served - even my husband. But our faith in that wonderful resurrection never waivered. On Solid Rock we stand! All other ground is sinking sand......
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