I would not walk. I was my mother's first and only child, and at the age of two, I would not walk. In states of confusion, frantic at times, she shuffled me from doctor to doctor trying to obtain a satisfying reason. By the time I was three, she had her answer. I would not walk, ever. I had been diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy.
I cannot imagine the true sense of the word devastation, but it is the only word that comes to mind when I think of how my mother must have felt. At that time she was only a few years older than I am today. She must have had so many hopes and dreams for her only child. She must have had so many hopes and dreams for herself. Does one come to a screeching halt with such an unexpected twist of events? This was not just a twist of events for her, this was going to be a new life.
This is initially what I imagine my mother going through. I do not know this other than from stories that I have been told. But to me, she has been nothing less than inspirational, motivational and amazing. She has made me the person that I am today and the person that I aspire to become. She could not make me strong physically, so she has made me strong in every other aspect. She has shaped my thoughts and my views. She has taught me how to face fear head on and yes, she has taught me how to stand. One of the many gifts that my mother has given me is a simple quote, "If you can't stand up, stand out." I cannot stand 'up', but I can stand. I can stand against anything, and I can stand for anything. She has led me to know that all of those initial hopes and dreams did not wither away with the sound of the doctor's voice. We continue to dream. We continue to hope. We work toward these as if they are goals, which in a sense, they are. These are my mother's lessons.
Life brings many challenges our way on a daily basis. I will stand to face all challenges, and I will accomplish my goals because of the gift my mother has given. She gave herself, her being and her life to me. I am her first and only child, and I still do not walk in the literal sense of the word, but I do travel. Yes, I travel. There is no destination that is unreachable, and I will continue to move forward for the rest of my life. However far away from her I may be, my mother is always with me in the form of my thoughts. With every new challenge I meet, "I might not stand up, but I certainly will stand out!"
