It has become very inspiring for me to know, by either talking with some of you, or by reading your posts on numerous Facebook sites, that a lot of you are able to maintain such a positive, and healthy outlook on your life. Despite the challenges that a Neurological disease can bring, many of you refuse to let it dampen who you really are. This motivates me, and serves as a constant source of encouragement for me. If I could have one wish come true it would be that I might be able to visit with each of you, and share with you what you do for me on a daily basis. To all of you who seem to, like me, find yourself constantly quarreling with your body because of a physical condition or disease, I would like to say thank-you for all of your support, friendship, and encouragement. I dedicate this blog to you, and trust that, since there are too many to name, that you will know who you are. Unfortunately though, this kind of positive outlook, and spirit, does not pertain to everyone. Some of the people that I have come into contact with seem to be in a place where they refuse to see anything in a positive light, as if their happiness can only be found within a constant shroud of misery and negativity. My heart goes out to people like this, because they are missing out on so much. I have learned in the past, and continue to remind myself in the present, that I have accepted my SCA, and that nothing will be changed, or gained, by a constant refusal to allow myself to be happy despite life's difficulties.
With that being said, however, there are a few tiny things that would make life a little more pleasant. I hesitate to even mention them, because they are so small. And really, they are such minute things that I can't imagine that they would be a bother to anyone. I will go ahead and mention them, though, and you will see how small and trivial they are......
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| Just a little bit...... |
Could slurred speech please be recognized as a second language? Maybe it could be called Cursive-Speech, you know, since Cursive's brief association with that whole writing stint appears to be done now. The title of Cursive is just sitting there! Up on the shelf, no longer being used, and gathering dust so why can't we reassign it to the area of speech. That way I could be bilingual, as Ataxia already seems to come equipped with this ability. I always wanted to speak another language, but I was never really gifted at learning in this area, that and the fact that I was lazy, never wanted to study, and because pointing and grunting were already universally understood. But I'm sure that you know what I mean, some people just seem to be naturals at learning, and picking up a second, third, or fourth language appears to be effortless. There was a day when I wanted to be one of these people, and in my quest to be multi-lingual and a international man of the world, I signed up for German my sophomore year of College. The class was at eight o'clock in the morning, and I'm not sure what possessed me to do this, because I struggled to speak understandable English that early. Anyway, I don't see that adding another speech pattern to the list of recognized world languages to be a big deal. Unless I hear that there are any objections, (and I can't hear anyone speaking up right now), then I am going to go ahead and refer to slurring as Cursive-speech. It just sounds more sophisticated than slurring, which is something you do when you're drunk. I'm not.
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| I was thinking that a Hobbit-style dwelling might make for a nice one-level home.....until I realized that this would involve bending down and crawling.....I'll leave that for the kids. |
I would also find it immensely helpful if my SCA would put just a little more effort into working with me. I mean, really, how hard could this be? It seems like such a small request to me. It's already there, re-shaping my Cerebellum and adding a bunch of weird side effects. It seems to me that it would be a small thing if it could throw in a helpful symptom once in awhile. It would be rather nice when I am explaining my SCA's conditions to people to be able to throw in a positive side effect. I could say something like, "along with poor balance and motor skills, my disease includes a ravenous-appetite that defies all logic, which also comes coupled with the inability to gain weight, or any other adverse side effects to food consumption, and this borders on nothing short of euphoric." I think that it would be a little bit of a boost to Ataxia's reputation as a bully if it would just allow itself to be presented as an Ala Carte Disease. If we could pick and choose from a menu of physical affects that were, say, put in a more positive light. Again, back to the weight-gain, (because it is a big issue for me...get it?). I have struggled all my life, or at least for the last fifty-odd years, with gaining a few extra pounds while at the same time having a sweet tooth. If I could have seen on a menu the ability to eat with some difficulty but never gain weight I would have ordered it. Probably even would have ordered it well-done, I don't know... maybe medium-rare. I would like to refer to this system not as a disability-menu, but instead as a thisability-menu. Because all side effects would come with a positive ability.
I guess it is all just in how you look at it. I am always on the lookout for small things, the seemingly insignificant common items that will help me see my world in a different light, or a different way.
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