I'm Still Here
Page 25
"So, Esther, before we continue on with our celebration, we have one more thing for you."
Holy crap, what else could there be? They just surprised me with a fundraiser and a check that was going to make a huge difference in my life. Then I saw Albert pick up his acoustic guitar. As he strummed the first few chords he said, "Red, I wrote this song for you. I hope you know that your home is here with us and that we, us, all of us—" he gestured to the crowd, "are your family. And that, no matter what, you will always be loved and will always have a voice with us."
My mouth was open again, as I heard him sing beautiful lyric after beautiful lyric, entwined with a melody that I knew would run through my brain for days and days.
Your lips are still and silent, but your eyes do all the talkin'.
They speak volumes, and make your voice so loud and clear.
Don't you worry 'bout a thing now darlin',
You've got the strength to persevere.
You're loved, you're home, and baby you're still here.
As he finished, I wiped the tears away from my eyes. Then Albert announced that the song was available for sale on iTunes, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Esther's Voice Foundation.
I took a sip of water from the glass that Jules had handed me and put the glass down by the chair. I stood up and hugged her and then Albert and each of the guys. I think Jugs may have touched my ass when I leaned into him, but hey, who was I to deny him anything at a time like this? I picked up my mike again as I sat down. "I don't know how you all expect me to sing after something like that. I am truly speechless. How do I even begin to thank all the people who have helped me? How do I thank each and every one of you for supporting me by being here tonight? Ho—"
I was interrupted by a voice from the crowd. "Enough with the touchy-feely crap. Get back to playing before the year ends!" boomed Tom, my boss.
"Well, that was my boss, so I'd better do as he says." The crowd laughed. "I won't delay much longer, but thank you everyone for everything."
Somehow, I made it through the next two sets, rang in the New Year and lived to tell about it. After the show, we went back to Albert and Jules' house to wind down. Kingston, Aster and Rob were there, of course, and Jillian and Bruce joined us as well. This was it. This was my family. So, since I could not toast the New Year with champagne, I did the next best thing. We toasted with Ho Hos and Fritos. And this time, I made it through the whole night without getting any in my eyebrows. It seemed like 2014 would be my year after all.
THE END
AUTHOR'S NOTE
One has to look no further than the news to see the impact that mental illness has on today's world. Treatment facilities are few and far between and grossly underfunded. One of the largest barriers to proper treatment for individuals with mental illness is the stigma that it still carries. As long as this stigma exists, efficient and effective treatments will never exist. Help end the stigma by asking for help. Now is the time to start talking about it. #itstime.
More information is available through the National Alliance on Mental Illness: www.nami.org.
For Amanda King and Anna Kroup; you are not forgotten.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Telling stories of resilient women, Kathryn Biel hails from upstate New York and is a spouse and mother of two wonderful and energetic kids. In between being Chief Home Officer and Director of Child Development of the Biel household, she works as a school-based physical therapist. She attended Boston University and received her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from The Sage Colleges. After years of writing countless letters of medical necessity for wheelchairs, finding increasingly creative ways to encourage the government and insurance companies to fund her clients' needs, and writing entertaining annual Christmas letters, she decided to take a shot at writing the kind of novel that she likes to read. Her musings and rants can be found on her personal blog, Biel Blather (kathrynbiel.blogspot.com). She is the author of Good Intentions (2013) and Hold Her Down (2014). Please feel free to follow on Twitter (@KRBiel) or on Facebook (Kathryn R. Biel: Author).
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