HOW COURAGE IS TAUGHT
Her name was Adelia and the lessons of courage that she taught are unsurpassed in my life. But how does one “teach” courage? Permit me to share her teachings. Adelia’s oldest son (we wil1 ca1l him Will) was exceptionally bright. At the age of twelve, however, and before the age of antibiotics, Will was stricken with a series of infections that destroyed most of his ability to function mentally as a normal person. From that age until his death at 56, his mother entirely cared for his needs. She slaved, fed, bathed, dressed, and attended to his restroom needs for forty-four years. The half-dozen words he could say were understood by her alone. Adelia protected her son from those “making fun of him,” mostly grandsons. The truth is that we were afraid of him because of his strange ways, like “Boo” in To Kill a Mockingbird. Other members of the family tried in vain to get Adelia to put Will…
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