I'm fairly certain that I have written about this before, but here I go again...
Every good story has a beginning, middle and end. The reason I enjoy a good movie, a good book, etc. is because there is always a conclusion!
When I was first diagnosed with MS, I got increasingly annoyed by the statement "at least you don't have cancer." OK, I get it, MS is NOT going to kill me, but there isn't really an ending to my MS story. Really, there isn't an ending to anyone's MS story because there isn't a cure and it isn't fatal. With cancer, there is an end; not always favorable, but some sort of conclusion. What does this mean? Every day, I get to wake up and acknowledge that it is just another day with MS. Why? Because being diagnosed with MS is 'til death do us part'... although admittedly I'll forever be poking around for some sort of conclusion to my MS story.
I need to acknowledge that 90% of the time I am no longer bitter about the fact that I will never be cured from this odd disease. I say this because I have a very close friend who challenges me daily with living for today, not last week or next year. Sometimes I basically tell her to take a hike because I need to be in my 10% misery for a little while, but I always find my way back from that place.
OK, so what is it really like not knowing what the conclusion will be when you have a chronic disease? Well, think of that favorite TV show you had at one point, that suddenly went off the air because you and only two other people were still watching it. Do you recall sitting around trying to figure out what was next for the characters? I think a show that speaks to a large population is LOST. I never watched the TV show, but I do recall hearing all of the conversations that people were having about the show... Were the characters aliens, were they dead, was the island purgatory. I honestly don't know what that conclusion was, but I know the people who cared were sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for the conclusion.
Why?
I think it is human nature to want to know what comes next, or how the story is going to end. We need to see beyond today to know that our lives will be exactly how we want them to be 20 years. I have a bit of a secret... Don't get too caught up on your plans because something is going to change those plans for you. It doesn't matter though because the plans are literally just plans, kind of like your budget is just your budget. I'm sure you have had a time in your life in which you had no idea something was going to break, and then your budget went right out the window. Last year, for me, it was my refrigerator, followed by a broken pipe, followed by a broken hot water heater. The only choice I had was to fix all of these items and move on. I learned some very valuable lessons with each twist of the road, but the most important lesson I have learned is that, in this moment I am exactly where I am supposed to be.
I guess what I am getting at is that I have to quit yearning to know what the end will look like, because really, the middle is what really matters in life!
Every good story has a beginning, middle and end. The reason I enjoy a good movie, a good book, etc. is because there is always a conclusion!
When I was first diagnosed with MS, I got increasingly annoyed by the statement "at least you don't have cancer." OK, I get it, MS is NOT going to kill me, but there isn't really an ending to my MS story. Really, there isn't an ending to anyone's MS story because there isn't a cure and it isn't fatal. With cancer, there is an end; not always favorable, but some sort of conclusion. What does this mean? Every day, I get to wake up and acknowledge that it is just another day with MS. Why? Because being diagnosed with MS is 'til death do us part'... although admittedly I'll forever be poking around for some sort of conclusion to my MS story.
I need to acknowledge that 90% of the time I am no longer bitter about the fact that I will never be cured from this odd disease. I say this because I have a very close friend who challenges me daily with living for today, not last week or next year. Sometimes I basically tell her to take a hike because I need to be in my 10% misery for a little while, but I always find my way back from that place.
OK, so what is it really like not knowing what the conclusion will be when you have a chronic disease? Well, think of that favorite TV show you had at one point, that suddenly went off the air because you and only two other people were still watching it. Do you recall sitting around trying to figure out what was next for the characters? I think a show that speaks to a large population is LOST. I never watched the TV show, but I do recall hearing all of the conversations that people were having about the show... Were the characters aliens, were they dead, was the island purgatory. I honestly don't know what that conclusion was, but I know the people who cared were sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for the conclusion.
Why?
I think it is human nature to want to know what comes next, or how the story is going to end. We need to see beyond today to know that our lives will be exactly how we want them to be 20 years. I have a bit of a secret... Don't get too caught up on your plans because something is going to change those plans for you. It doesn't matter though because the plans are literally just plans, kind of like your budget is just your budget. I'm sure you have had a time in your life in which you had no idea something was going to break, and then your budget went right out the window. Last year, for me, it was my refrigerator, followed by a broken pipe, followed by a broken hot water heater. The only choice I had was to fix all of these items and move on. I learned some very valuable lessons with each twist of the road, but the most important lesson I have learned is that, in this moment I am exactly where I am supposed to be.
I guess what I am getting at is that I have to quit yearning to know what the end will look like, because really, the middle is what really matters in life!
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