I saw the doctor's lips moving, but as soon as he spoke the first word of Bob's diagnosis, I stopped listening. I did not want to hear that my suspicions were correct. We were looking for a reason that would cause Bob to have increasing weakness in his arms and hands. Over the past year, he had slowly lost muscle strength in those extremities. His arms flopped against his body and hung from his shoulders. They were useless. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a slow tormented way to die. Bob was given a death sentence. This is the story of a love affair that lasted 51 years. My husband and I lived with the ruthless monster with the initials ALS for four of the 51 years. Our story speaks of the heartaches we endured and the humorous times that helped us get through another day.