Sunday, April 8, 2012

What I Miss the Most and Skype

When we decided to accept this expat assignment, I knew that I would miss my family and friends. That's only natural. But there was a world of adventure  waiting for us in Malaysia, and videoconferencing over the internet would make the distance seem closer. For the most part, it's been a wonderful way to keep in touch and up-to-date. My little girl who would never speak to her grandparents over the phone was more than happy to talk when a camera was involved. 

A few weeks before we departed Texas, my father was diagnosed with colon cancer.  To actually lay my eyes on him during our weekly Skype sessions was wonderful. I could see for myself if the chemo treatments were taking a huge toll on him, something that would be harder to do via phone or email. Since then, his chemo has ended, and he's currently cancer-free. Amen to that.

Then there's our friend Adam. He's a college buddy of ours who always went on the annual post-college ski trip that my hubby would attend before we had kids.  Adam was diagnosed with ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease, a couple years ago. This year, instead of going skiing, a big group of friends went to visit Adam. If we had been in America, I'm sure that my hubby would have gone, too. Instead, we Skyped in and had a chance to see him for few minutes. Neither hubby nor I said it out loud, but both us knew that it was probably goodbye. Adam passed away a few days later. Sometimes Skype just doesn't cut it. It's fine for "until we meet again," but is no substitute for being there in person when it really counts.

2 comments:

  1. I totally get this. My father-in-law was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer about two years ago and had been doing amazing until recently. Treatment has taken it's tole and he's been diagnosed with Lukemia now and we know the time is short. The boys have loved being able to stay in touch with them but you can't hug through Skype. You can't just "be" with them in the same way. Sometimes it's close...but not close enough.

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    Replies
    1. Niki, I'm so sorry to hear about your father-in-law. I'll be thinking of you and your family.

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