Today wasn’t really super special. I did a talk in Batangas for the Batangas Information Technology Society (BITS). Then tuned in to a song I’ve been listening to on the long drive home. Glen Campbell’s final ballad for his wife before he succumbed to Alzheimer’s disease, “I’m not Gonna Miss you.”
I love my wife very much. We’ve been married for almost a year now and I must say that I never expected married life to be this good. Especially with all the jokes about it out there. Apple has made my life so much better and has made me a far better man than who I used to be.
The reason why this song struck a chord in me is not because of the title – although it is quite intriguing. It’s because he heart-wrenchingly sings about Alzheimer’s in a most ironical, yet sadly sarcastic way. You have to listen to the song and read the lyrics to understand what I’m talking about.
I’m still here, but yet I’m gone
I don’t play guitar or sing my songs
They never defined who I am
The man that loves you ’til the end
You’re the last person I will love
You’re the last face I will recall
And best of all, I’m not gonna miss you
Not gonna miss you
I’m never gonna hold you like I did
Or say I love you to the kids
You’re never gonna see it in my eyes
It’s not gonna hurt me when you cry
I’m never gonna know what you go through
All the things I say or do
All the hurt and all the pain
One thing selfishly remains
I’m not gonna miss you
I’m not gonna miss you
I tried putting myself in his predicament – forgetting my wife, my kids someday, everything I’ve done, everything that meant a lot to me. There is a deep wrongness in seeing someone you love just fade away – more so in slowly forgetting that your relationship with them ever existed.
It is one of the saddest things in the world to have a fading memory. Glen Campbell was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2011. His last show was on November 2012. Today, he’s become a patient at an Alzheimer’s long-term care and treatment facility.
The truth is, this song helps me to remember that someday my loved ones won’t be here anymore. And it’s gonna hurt.
Some of the best things in life can be overlooked as passe – sometimes ever so subtly. I hope that this song would help you remember to cherish the people who mean most to you as it helps me remember to cherish mine.
“It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.” – 1 Corinthians 15:52
Thank God that it doesn’t end in death and void.