Watching Their Dance: Three Sisters, a Genetic Disease and Marrying into a Family At Risk For Huntington's
Logline
Therese takes the biggest gamble of her life and marries John, who has a 50/50 chance of inheriting an incurable brain disorder, Huntington's disease. Over a period of 38 years, their life is filled with unpredictability, touch choices, and pain, and great happiness.
Genre
Memoir,
Short Summary
Therese and John, college sweethearts, are graduating and marrying until an uncertainty enters their lives that Therese is unsure if she can live with. Therese plans and prepares for all things, must make the hardest decision of life.
In 2008, John's third sister dies from Huntington's disease. In 2016, John is genetically tested and is negative. Therese comes to realize that the path she willingly chose opened her heart to love more deeply; that acknowledging her world could change overnight has made her life richer.
Setting
Northern California U.S.A.
Based on a True Story
Yes
Plot - Premise
Internal Journey/Rebirth
Plot - Other Elements
Meaningful Message
Mature Audience Themes
Information not completed
Main Character Details
Name: Therese Crutcher-Marin
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Romantic, Skillful, Strong Moral Code, Aspiring, Educated, Leader, Gracious, Honorable, Perseverance, Selfless, Empathetic, Engaging, Faithful,Empathetic,Educated,Faithful,Leader,Skillful
Additional Character Details
Name: Loralee (Marin) Harbin
Age: 37
Gender: Female
Role: Emotional
Key Traits: Engaging, Gracious, Secretive, Selfless, Beautiful, Empathetic,Empathetic,Selfless
Additional Character Details
Name: John Anthony Marin
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Role: logical
Key Traits: Confident, Educated, Empathetic, Faithful, Perseverance, Romantic, Selfless, Strong Moral Code,Heartthrob,Educated,Selfless,Romantic,Visionary,Skillful
Additional Character Details
Name: Marcia Louise Marin
Age: 35
Gender: Female
Role: logical
Key Traits: Aspiring, Beautiful, Complex, Gracious, Heroic, Modest, Selfless,Gracious,Heroic,Clumsy
Development Pitch
Forty years ago, my college sweetheart and his three sisters discovered why their mother had been placed in Napa State Mental Hospital for all of their childhood; Phyllis had Huntington's disease. I struggled with John's unknown gene status, the uncertainty we would live with, and broke off the relationship. Fortunately, I had an epiphany which returned me to him. I took the biggest gamble of my life and married the love of my life knowing the possible consequences of my decision. Living at risk was stressful, especially when his oldest sister, Lora, began showing symptoms; two years later his second sister, Marcia, exhibited twitches and five years later his third sister, Cindy, tested positive. After Lora died in 1989, I returned to school and completed a M.S. in Healthcare Administration, changed careers and entered the healthcare workforce in hospice care. John and I clung to each other and our love got us through the tough times. For 24 years, John and I traveled the HD journey with his sisters as they battled this insidious disease. In 2010, after John's three sisters had died, we both were stuck in complicated grief, searching for ways to heal. I survived for 38 years by incorporating mindfulness, hope and forgiveness into my daily life allowing me to live each day fully with this huge uncertainty. Writing my story allowed me to heal.