Dancing with ALS and Life

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com Living with a terminal illness sometimes feels like a wild roller coaster ride. I’m at the bottom of the track and slowly up I go. Click, click, click, I make it to the top of the hill. Then, in an instant, I plummet at high speeds into the valley below. I start going up another small hill and back down again and then up ahead, I can’t see.  All of a sudden, I'm whipped around a sharp turn. This journey has so many facets, and it changes from moment to moment.  Initially, the diagnosis comes and whiplash hits. I'm trying to process things in a state of unbelief. I begin to mourn some of the losses, maybe check out for a little and then I have a choice to make: will I turn left or right or keep going straight? Depending on the choice I make, the result is the difference between feeling a sense of hope, purpose or maybe despair.  Some people‘s journeys are very short at this stage of the ride and others may be more of a lengthy one.  ...

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com “ Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can.”  ~Arthur Ashe 2/26

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com Time travel can be a way to connect and build relationships with people. In this blog, I will be talking about what my transportation experiences have looked like with ALS and my disabilities. However, before we do, let’s take a trip down memory lane. I remember the first time I got into a car with my drivers permit.  As a joke, my father put on a motorcycle helmet, looked at me and said, “I am now prepared to teach you how to drive!”  I laughed so hard, I almost peed my pants!  Looking back, he probably was pretty smart and realistic. My first car was a manual stick shift.  If you have ever driven stick shift, you know there is a learning curve to having smooth transitions between the gas, clutch and gears. After several months  of practicing my Mario Andretti skills, I officially passed my drivers test in 1988 at the age of 16.  I couldn't wait to get behind the wheel of the car and experience the feeling of independence...

 Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love.   ~ Mother Theresa & Follow the LAW  (Love Always Wins) ~ Stacy & Christian   2/26