My life has been good since being diagnosed. It was perfect prior to DX; but in the darkness of the gym, in the final few minutes of my basketball game, the ref called out "Strike 3!". My right hand began to tremble and my hands grew weak. I had been hit with PD and I had a need to hit back.
"That's too bad," someone said without a hint of compassion. I thought I would get more sympathy; after all, I was about to declare war on my brain and I was gathering my army of sympathizers. Outside of my family, there were only a few really genuine soldiers. Good friends but, what could they do? Drugs kept the enemy quiet, but my brain was, and is, winning the war.
That realization became my "aha!" moment. I was in this battle alone. When I took my first foray, I did so with Invictus carved into my brain:
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
My weapon of choice was exercise and I began a flurry of sweat and strain using weights, isometric training for PWP, stationary bike and treadmill. I do something daily and I believe it has slowed the advance of the enemy. Remember, Ali had lived with PD for about 30 years. With time and the advancement of PD research, we should all get more time than he did to enjoy life.
("Invictus" - Willam Ernest Henley)
P.S. This entry was serious, but I also find humor in our situation, so keep a lookout, I might try to sneak some in. Please laugh.
Also, I really appreciate your comments. Keep them coming.
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