Living in the eye of the storm...
My name is Robert Bishop...In 1996 my life was turned completely upside down. One moment I was married, had children, lived in a nice house, ran a successful software company, went to church... I was a reasonably happy guy. The next moment I was living a nightmare. My wife was diagnosed and eventually succumbed to a genetic terminal brain disorder; the knowledge of which had been hidden by her paternal grandfather. To make matters worse, I learned that each of our five children were 50% at-risk to suffer the same fate. Can you imagine knowing you had a 50% chance of suffering 15-20 years while the nerve cells in your brain slowly died? Can you imagine losing everything that is you (from your personality and intelligence to your ability to walk and speak) while still young?
To add insult to injury, our family finances were suddenly in the toilet. Somehow our savings had disappeared, an empty credit line was fully drawn, and large balances on never before seen credit cards were discovered. I still don't know where any of this money went. (For all I know she buried it in the back yard.) At about that same time, our health insurance provider walked away leaving a mountain of unpaid medical bills and the company I had founded years earlier was practically bankrupt. I felt completely helpless as I saw everything that I had worked so hard to build and protect systematically destroyed. It got to the point that I wondered what else could possibly go wrong? (You can read the full story here.)
Light in a tunnel of darkness...
Other than the children, the only light in this seemingly endless tunnel of darkness was the nanny, Anne-Marie. I was amazed at how the children warmed to her. Despite years of abuse, I was witness to an almost overnight transformation (especially with the younger children). I could tell that she loved them and that they loved her.
The first miracle...
I could never have orchestrated the events that led to the sale of the company I had founded. Suddenly, the technology we'd developed became strategic to a particular market segment. Not many months later, the number one company in that segment acquired our struggling company. Stock that couldn't purchase a Big Mac became worth a lot of money.
The second miracle...
They say that lightning never (or rarely) strikes in the same place twice. I guess that's what makes the second time so special. After the sale of the company, Anne-Marie left our family and moved back east. I couldn't see my way forward alone so I told God that I would do my part if He would put someone in my path who would love me as my best friend and who would love the children as her own. A year later the strangest thing happened and Anne-Marie and I crossed paths again. Even stranger, 30 days later we were married. I still can't believe it. What woman would marry an "older" guy like me and take on five children with the likelihood of disease? Shortly thereafter, Anne-Marie adopted the children and today we have two new additions to our family. Paige Noel (now 6) and Savannah Ruby (now 3).
Living in the eye of the storm...
Why do I feel like the luckiest guy in the world? I know there's another side to the storm we've passed through. But here's the thing... if we can just let go of whatever expectation we have for our life and be OK with whatever comes into our space, we can be truly happy—even in the midst of extreme circumstance.
I hope you enjoy these postings on our adventure living in Italy since we will all pass through a storm or two during our lifetime. May we all "want what we have, and take what we're given with grace." DON HENLEY
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