A Short Walk Home: With Love All Things Are Possible - Softcover

Cry, David

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1578265673 ISBN 13: 9781578265671

Publisher: Hatherleigh Press, 2015

Synopsis

A Short Walk Home is a heartfelt and inspirational memoir of a father raising and ultimately losing a child to the neurological disorder adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD). Exploring the full extent to which a disease like ALD can shape and affect a life, as both David Cry and his family try to come to grips with the inevitable conclusion to their struggles, A Short Walk Home captures the helplessness and anger that every parent feels at being unable to save their children.

Presented in prose both simple and true, A Short Walk Home shows us how to find peace and acceptance—at a time when we need it most. Drawn from the author’s personal experience, as well as years of working with individuals and families suffering from ALD, Cry's story is at once both very personal, and very accessible—a story of appreciating what you have, making the most of the time you have left, and finding solace in the face of grief.

Contrasting sadness with hope, vulnerability with strength, and frustration with acceptance, A Short Walk Home demonstrates that grief, no matter how great, can give way to a greater understanding.

About this title

About the Author

David Cry is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Adrenoleukodystrophy Foundation, an organization founded in 2000 to serve the needs of families with the fatal pediatric condition, ALD. David lives his passions daily, having assisted mothers and fathers affected by this terrible condition in over 150 countries. David has established relationships with researchers at Johns Hopkins, Duke, Minnesota, Harvard, M.I.T., and many other institutions of higher learning. “Care today for a cure tomorrow” has been The ALD Foundation's motto since day one, and David works tirelessly every day to make this change a reality. He currently resides in Slidell, Louisiana with his wife Jaymee and son Brennan.

J.K. Simmons is an American actor of film, television and stage. Simmons' performance in Whiplash received universal acclaim and earned him more than 30 accolades, including the Academy Award, the Golden Globe Award and BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

My name is David Cry. I live in Slidell, Louisiana, with my wife, Jaymee, and son Brennan.

In 2011, when I began writing this book, this page was just that short, simple, and shallow. But now, having been to hell and back, it would seem appropriate to alter my introduction to you, to this book.

So: My name is David Cry. I am a husband to Jaymee, a lady with more courage and bravery than I have ever experienced. She has (now) lost five close family members, including a son and a father, to adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD). It has not been easy; each time, it has taken a unique and personal toll. Yet despite this, Jaymee remains the warmest and most loving woman alive. She is an incredible wife, and a wonderful mother. I believe that our coming together and starting a family was an act of fate; that God decided David Cry should marry Jaymee Godfrey, and that together they would be tested at every turn. And through it all, our resolve for life and our love for one another have only been strengthened.

In addition to being a husband, I was and am a proud father. Although my son Logan was not mine biologically, I did my best to love him as though he were. We had difficulties—the normal things that occur when families blend. In my heart, I know that Logan did not deserve what happened to him. I had to watch as ALD stripped away the little boy I knew, but despite that, I will always remember the child he was before: a loving kid, always quick with a smile, a hug, or a nuzzle. I miss him daily, and those feelings will never end.

I am also the father of Brennan, who will be 7 when this book comes out. Brennan is an incredible kid. He was screened for ALD before being implanted in Jaymee, and knowing that the same disease that took his brother will not affect him is an enormous relief. Brennan is highly intelligent, just like my father was. In fact, they share so many similar characteristics that at times it feels bizarre. The main question I have asked myself since Brennan was 2 is: How does one maintain with a child who is more intelligent than his own parents? Brennan continues to challenge us daily. His ability to set goals and follow through on his plans is remarkable, particularly for someone his age. We can already see that he has what it takes to accomplish whatever he chooses. He shows love abundantly, and cares for others. We have been very blessed by his existence.

I hope that, as you walk along the path of this book and its story, you will be mindful to suspend your disbelief. All that you will read occurred, and even more that I do not wish shared. The fact that we remain whole can be attributed to but one thing: love. Love that we give, and love that we receive—both have worked to sustain us. Ultimately, I believe that this growing closer together is what God intended for us all.

Life has not, in my 46 years of ups and downs, ever appeared complicated. We all have good times and bad. The negative things that life contains challenge each of us. My hope is that, through reading the story of my son and my family, I am able to impart to you one lesson: “Getting through it” is but one aspect of our lives. Live happy. Love more. Life is an amazing journey. Never give up hope.

—Excerpt from the Prologue by David Cry

Edition details

• Publisher: Hatherleigh Press
• Publication date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1578265673
• ISBN 13: 9781578265671
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 160