Pat Robertson is Wrong

Pat Robertson has not had my respect for quite some time now.  Recently, he made a statement that has offended me to the core.  He stated that a man is free to divorce his wife if she has Alzheimer's, on the pretense that "She is not there". 

I am deeply and personally aware of the toll that this disease takes on the caregivers.  I watched my granddad in the latter part of my grandmother's journey suffer through emotional pain and inconvenience on a daily basis.  My Uncle Loren has taken care of my aunt for years without a spoken word from her to say that she loves him or knows him or is thankful for the ice cream that he serves her everyday.

Pat Robertson's statement gives my granddad "permission" to walk away from my grandma.  His statement gives my uncle permission to walk away from my aunt.  And with this reasoning, I could have walked away from my grandmother because she didn't know who I was in her last days on earth.

If I had the opportunity to speak with Pat Robertson, I would tell him that the example that has been set by my granddad and my uncle have left life long impressions on me of what true love is all about.  They have demonstrated that you love someone, not only when it is convenient, but when it is tough and hard and seemingly without reward.  They have demonstrated that their loved ones have value.

People are not to be seen as commodities measured only by their usefulness but rather measured by their inherent worth.  When people are seen as commodities, they are used for prostitution, drug trafficking, abortion, euthanasia, genocide, slavery, and can be tossed aside when the terrible disease of Alzheimer's wracks their brains.

If at some future date you find me staring into the distance because this disease has taken it's toll on my mind and body please do not cast me off.  Please still love me.  I will do the same for the loved ones around me.