Lorenzo’s Oil
Last night I watched Lorenzo’s Oil. I borrowed this video while in Australia but never watched it. I wasted a lot of money on videos while in Australia… borrowing and never really having the time to watch it. That video store along Sydney Road (oh, how I miss Sydney Road!) made a ton of money from me. Anyway, it’s gone now. Just before I left, they changed management. It’ll never be the same. It wasn’t the same the last time I stepped in. Those were the days.
Back to the movie… I was channel surfing as I usually do, I find watching tv such a mundane task. It was the start of the hour so Lorenzo’s Oil just started on HBO. I got myself comfortable (it was freakin’ cold last night so I piled pillows around me) and started watching. Man, in my mind, I was like, “hey, I never got to watch this so this is great… what is it about I wonder…” I knew it was about someone being sick or someone being kidnapped or something. Obviously NO CLUE!
It’s a film about a boy who is diagnosed with ALD, otherwise known as Adrenoleukodystrophy … The parents are amazing. It makes a difference if you come from the World Bank. You’re smarter and have more perseverance than the rest of us.
The movie seemed to focus on the mother and her love for her child but at the end of the day, it was the father who championed the search for a cure and even till today, continues to work on the Myelin Project. Wow… Most amazing is also their friend from the Comoros Islands, Oumouri… who is still helping to care for Lorenzo till today.
I am most amazed at both parents for their love and devotion to their son… most importantly, their belief that their son would be able to overcome the sickness and to be honest, he did kind of. Of course he cannot see, move or do anything on his own but his mind is intact and he is someone in that sense. I believe if his parents had not believed in him, Lorenzo probably wouldn’t be around today.
I decided to do a bit of a read up on this true story. I came upon the sad news that Michaela Odone, the mother of Lorenzo, after going through so much, passed away at 61 with lung cancer in 2000.
It was a great film and although a bit technical at times, it definitely moved me to tears in some parts. I mean, it must be very taxing to take care of someone who has a degenerative disease. The many nurses who got tired of it, who didn’t believe in their cause, the no. of closed doors they faced with the medical community, the ALD foundation… it is a miracle they were able to find a cure on their own… Wow.
The Odones never made their son feel like he was a burden to them. That’s what I understood from the film and that is something to be inspired by.
I realised throughout the film that this is something that no one would ever wish upon anybody… it is a horrible, horrible disease. I realised how blessed most of us are without acknowledging it at all. We can walk, we can talk, we can see… that is already a blessing.
The movie also focused on the Catholic faith a bit… I guess it was one of their pillars that held them up. I thought about it and in my mind, I realised that God gave this family a purpose.
Although they kept to themselves and didn’t end up going to church anymore in the film that’s what I understood, God really used them for the greater good. Lorenzo’s Oil may not work for everybody and although they only tested it on their son, the fact that it worked for Lorenzo is a miracle. It could have gone the other way and they would never have found out the good benefits of the oil.
I know most of you may disagree with me on this point. God?? If God was there, why did he allow so much suffering in one family? One awful illness and then another? Why did he strike so many times?
In my opinion, I can only say that if what we read from Genesis is correct, God did not intend the world to be a bad place to live in. He made all things good to start off with. Unfortunately, he gave us a mind of our own.
So we are to blame? I say, “yes.” Why? ‘Cos we need to take the blame some times. We always want to appear blame-less but we must understand that we are not perfect. That’s right, we aren’t and we can’t blame God for that. We chose this path ourselves. Even now, we still do it.
It got me thinking about purpose and belief. They really believed in their cause. Of course, it was because their son was stricken with ALD but at the same time, they had so much determination and drive for their son’s sake and I am most amazed by that.
Here I am, living my little life and having no direction or passion whatsoever. They were lost too but they persevered in the darkness till finally, they were successful in finding what they were looking for… I hope I’ll have that drive and purpose, something that I can dedicate myself to with so much passion. No, I don’t wish my family to be stricken with any illness but it is something to learn from.
I guess God is teaching me something here too. Slowly but surely, opening my eyes.
A few articles on Lorenzo’s Oil:-
- Proof for Lorenzo’s Oil dated July 14, 2005
- The truth about the good oil dated November 5, 2002
Just do a search on Lorenzo’s Oil and you’ll come up with a wealth of articles.
It is a good movie to watch. I was never really able to watch the ending in peace. But overall, still a very poignant and beautiful story. What makes it even more impactful, is that it is a true story.
