Until I say good-bye : my year of living with joy

In June 2011, Susan Spencer-Wendel learned she had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)?Lou Gehrig's disease?an irreversible condition that systematically destroys the nerves that power the muscles. She was forty-four years old, with a devoted husband and three young children, and she had only one year of health remaining. Susan decided to live that year with joy. She quit her job as a journalist and spent time with her family. She built an outdoor meeting space for friends in her backyard. And she took seven trips with the seven most important people in her life. As her health declined, Susan journeyed to the Yukon, Hungary, the Bahamas, and Cyprus. She took her sons to swim with dolphins, and her teenage daughter, Marina, to Kleinfeld's bridal shop in New York City to see her for the first and last time in a wedding dress. She also wrote this book. No longer able to walk or even to lift her arms, she tapped it out letter by letter on her iPhone using only her right thumb, the last finger still working. However, Until I Say Good-Bye is not angry or bitter. It is sad in parts?how could it not be??but it is filled with Susan's optimism, joie de vivre, and sense of humor. It is a book about life, not death. One that, like Susan, will make everyone smile. From the Burger King parking lot where she cried after her diagnosis to a snowy hot spring near the Arctic Circle, from a hilarious family Christmas disaster to the decrepit monastery in eastern Cyprus where she rediscovered her heritage, Until I Say Good-Bye is not only Susan Spencer-Wendel's unforgettable gift to her loved ones?a heartfelt record of their final experiences together?but an offering to all of us: a reminder that "every day is better when it is lived with joy."

In June 2011, Susan Spencer-Wendel learned she had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)—Lou Gehrig's disease—an irreversible condition that destroys the nerves that power the muscles. She was forty-four years old, with a devoted husband and three young children, and she had only one year of health remaining.

She decided to live that year with joy, spending time with her family and building a meeting place for friends. And, as her health declined, she took seven trips with the seven most important people in her life—to the Yukon, Hungary, the Bahamas, and Cyprus. She swam with the dolphins with her sons and went to New York City with her teenage daughter.

From the parking lot where she cried after her diagnosis to a snowy hot springs near the Arctic Circle, from a hilarious family Christmas disaster to the monastery in Cyprus where she rediscovered her heritage, Until I Say Good-Bye is Susan Spencer-Wendel's unforgettable gift to her loved ones and to us: a record of their final experiences together and a reminder that every day is better when it is lived with joy.

Susan Spencer-wendel’s Until I Say Good-bye: My Year Of Living With Joy Is A Moving And Inspirational Memoir By A Woman Who Makes The Most Of Her Final Days After Discovering She Has Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (als). After Spencer-wendel, A Celebrated Journalist At The Palm Beach Post, Learns Of Her Diagnosis Of Als, More Commonly Known As Lou Gehrig’s Disease, She Embarks On Several Adventures, Traveling Toseveral Countries And Sharing Special Experiences With Loved Ones. One Trip Takes Spencer-wendel And Her Fourteen-year-old Daughter, Marina, To New York City’s Kleinfeld’s Bridal To Shop For Marina’s Future Wedding Dress—an Occasion That Susan Knows She Will Never See. Co-written With Bret Witter, Until I Say Good-bye Is Spencer-wendel’s Account Of Living A Full Life With Humor, Courage, And Love, But Also Accepting Death With Grace And Dignity. It’s A Celebration Of Life, A Look Into The Face Of Death, And The Effort We Must Make To Show The People That We Love And Care About How Very Much They Mean To Us. A moving and inspirational memoir by celebrated journalist Susan Spencer-Wendel who makes the most of her final days after discovering she has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). After journalist Spencer-Wendel learns of her diagnosis of ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, she embarks on several adventures. This includes taking her fourteen-year-old daughter, Marina, to New York City's Kleinfeld's Bridal to shop for Marina's future wedding dress-- an occasion Spencer-Wendell knows she will never see. This is her account of living a full life with humor, courage, and love, accepting death with grace and dignity, and showing the people we love and care about how very much they mean to us