Ok, so I use the spectral leg and a cane, a very pretty one at that.  I work in New York City and commute every day.  I wake a little after 4 in the morning and am at my desk, smiling by 7:30 in the morning.  What most people do not see is the struggle sometimes to make that walk into the office.  I count that as one of the upsides of early.

I try and go to Zumba two nights a week.  It’s a class I have been going  to for several years.  And yes,  I have been able to do less and less.  But I still go. The music connects me with my mother and my family.  We played some of those songs when I was growing up.  And as a family, we always danced.

I am a person.  I am not a condition or an illness.

I hate it when people tell me I am inspiring.  With one major exception,  which I will discuss in a moment.

I hate when people say ” I don’t see how you do it.”  Again, it’s my life.  What am  I going to do, crawl into a cave of illness and defeat?  Why wouldn’t I do it?  Where is self-pity going to get me? It’s not going to help or make things better.  Ditto the “you are so brave”.  Why?  If I don’t wake up in the morning and go, what is there?  I am not brave, I am freaking terrified.  In terms of bravery there is so much more in this world to be brave about other than living a quotidian life.  I belonged to a group when this journey started and one of the women had a granddaughter who was 9 and had something wrong with her ankles.  If I remember correctly, they were disintegrating.  That’s brave.  Her family was brave and strong.  Me, getting up and living my life is not brave.

I always try and tell people when they tell me I am inspiring that I am not.  I do not live nor wish to live a poster child life.   This is my life and my reality.

Ok, there is one instance where I don’t mind as much about the inspiration thing. Yes, you  Jessica Campbell.  Check out her blog MS and Fabulous.  When it comes from someone who is going through what you are going through then it’s alright.  I am awed by Jessica.  There are people who confront these issues daily with style and true grace.  They are inspiring.  I am honored to even be thought of in that company.

I appreciate all my friends who support me and encourage me.  I am grateful for them.  I guess it’s the “outsiders” who consider my daily life inspiring.  It is not.  Choosing to live with a little mobility issue is not inspiring!

We all have issues that we confront. The ones I confront may just be more visually apparent.  And who knows?  My challenges may be so much less than what they appear.