Bruce Willis’ Wife, emma heming williswrote an emotional essay titled ‘The Holidays Look Different Now’ where she opened up about taking care of her husband at Christmas. Bruce retired from his career in 2022 after his family announced that he struggled with aphasia, a language disorder that affects communication.
The family announced about a year later that the condition had developed into frontotemporal dementia, a neurodegenerative disease that gradually impairs behavior, language and personality.
“Vacations have a way of holding up a mirror, reflecting who we were, who we are, and what we imagined they would be,” Emma writes in an article for her website.
Emma and Bruce have daughters Mabel Rae, 13, and Evelyn, 11. He explained that the festive season can provoke complex emotions.
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“When you’re caring for someone with dementia, that reflection can feel particularly poignant,” Emma wrote. “Traditions that once seemed somewhat effortless require planning – lots of planning. Moments that once brought simple joy can become entangled in a web of sadness.”
Emma said that despite the difficulties, there can still be “warmth” and “joy” in the holiday season. “I’ve learned that holidays don’t disappear when dementia enters your life,” she said. “they change.”
Speaking openly about grief, Emma wrote, “Grief isn’t just about death.”
She added, “It’s about change, and the caregiving that caregivers know all too well. It’s about the realization that things won’t unfold the way they once did.” “It’s about the absence of routines, conversations or roles that were once so familiar that you never imagined them ending.”
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Emma talked about memories of the past Christmas, revealing that they were very important to her husband. “For me, the holidays bring memories of Bruce at the center of it all. He loved this time of year – the energy, the family time, the traditions,” she said.
Emma added, “He was the guy making pancakes, going out in the snow with the kids, being a constant presence in the house as the day wore on. There was comfort in the routine of knowing how the day would go, especially since I’m a creature of habit. Dementia doesn’t erase those memories. But it creates space between then and now. And that space can be painful.”
Emma and Bruce Willis’ daughters are feeling a deep sense of loss
According to Marca, Emma previously said that four years after her husband was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), her daughters are already feeling a deep sense of loss and the disease has gotten worse. In an interview with Vogue Australia in October, Emma said that while her daughters, Mabel and Evelyn, are “doing well all things considered,” she also “mourns” their father’s progressive decline.
“I think they’re doing well,” Emma said. “They mourn. They miss their dad a lot. He’s missing important milestones, it’s hard on them.”