Erin Rockstrom’s Mother Has Rare Strain Of Courage

Letter of the week From Feb. 27

What would you do? One day your whole life is changed forever. Your 13-year-old daughter is “accidentally” shot in the head. Against all odds she lives. However her brain is severely injured and there is little chance of full recovery.

Initial support is plentiful but time passes and the support fades. Everyone else’s life goes on, as does your daughter’s.

You do what you must. This is, after all, your child. Once home you give your all to help her recover. There is hope at first, small victories. But in time everyone, including your daughter, realizes that she will never get better. The injury is too severe. She sinks deeper and deeper into depression. All of the love, encouragement and support loved ones give doesn’t help. She does not want to live like this. She’s only 14, she should be a freshman.

Visiting friends try to cheer her up. But their lives are different, too. They are in high school now. They don’t know what things to share with her anymore. They update her on people and talk of someday doing things together again. But they and she know that it won’t happen. Eventually she gives up completely. You are watching her slowly die.

Still, you try to save her. You love her. She is your child.

Did Debbie Rockstrom realize that although they weren’t ready for Erin to die, Erin was?

For 17 months Debbie basically devoted her life to saving Erin and, in the end, she did. What courage. Janice Duvanich Spokane

xxxx