Aide Helps Pope With Speech on 82nd Birthday
An ailing Pope John Paul II celebrated his 82nd birthday before thousands of cheering youngsters but read only a few lines of his speech before deferring to an aide.
John Paul looked tired during the brief marking of the day in a Vatican auditorium, where a youth band played “Happy Birthday.”
Ushers wheeled the pope into and out of the room on a platform.
A hand tremor, slurred speech and difficulty walking--symptoms of Parkinson’s disease--have plagued the pope for years, and doctors have told him to conserve his strength whenever he can.
Yet John Paul on Wednesday will begin a five-day trip to Azerbaijan and Bulgaria.
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