Celebrities
Bruce Willis’ family celebrate his 68th birthday with emotional posts
It’s Bruce Willis’ first birthday since being diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia.
Bruce Willis celebrated his 68th birthday on Sunday.
His wife, Emma Heming, held back tears as she delivered an emotional message on Instagram to mark the occasion, while daughter Scout Willis posted a throwback photo of her and her dad.
Heming opens up about her sadness
The birthday is Willis’ first since it was revealed he has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia.
Heming admits she started the day by crying, and that while she is doing what is needed to help Bruce, she was feeling particularly sad on his birthday.
“Today is my husband’s birthday. I have started the morning by crying as you can see by my swollen eyes and snotty nose,” said Heming. “I just think it’s important that you see all sides of this.
“I always get this message or people always tell me, ‘Oh, you’re so strong. I don’t know how you do it.’ I’m not given a choice. I wish I was, but I’m also raising two kids in this.
“Sometimes in our lives, we have to put our big girl panties on and get to it. And that’s what I’m doing. But I do have times of sadness, every day, grief every day, and I’m really feeling it today on his birthday.”
In a second video, Heming says she became emotional while making a reel for her husband, and called watching videos of him “a knife in my heart”.
“I worked on this [forthcoming] reel that I’m posting for my husband’s birthday. I don’t know why I do that to myself because the videos are like a knife in my heart,” she said.
“But as much as I do it for myself I do it for you because I know how much you love my husband,” she said before pausing and adding “Don’t cry, Emma.
“But it means so much to me, so thank you.”
Scout posts photo of her on Bruce’s shoulders
Daughter Scout posted a throwback photo of her with her dad. She noted that while it wasn’t an easy day for her, she was privileged to call Bruce her father.
“It’s his birthday so send all of your love, tenderness, care and prayer his way for a moment!,’ wrote Scout.
“Happy birthday to one of my best friends, the Pisces king, the master of duality, both action hero icon and gentle girl dad. What a privilege to have this man as my father and learn so much about life, joy, mischief and art through him.
“Today is not necessarily an easy day, because it’s a day full of so deep love, and our grief really does show us the depth of our loving for someone. So I’m trying to be with both today.
“Grief is a price I’ll always pay to know what it is to feel such love I’m sending my love to anyone who has ever felt the capacity stretched by the enormity of love and humanness of grief. I love you.”