evolution

I've been a quad for over 35 years, as hard as it is for me to believe. I've seen myself put on a few pounds and slow down a bit. It's all been a slow progression, but the kind of progression that pretty much everyone goes through as they age.

In the last few years, I've continued to challenge myself to grow, most notably going back to school, starting a new career and moving back to Montreal. But my biggest challenge has been one that I didn't choose. It's been dealing with the aging process as a quad. I've dealt with a recent fall and the resulting broken leg. I've been less active for a number of reasons which has lowered my stamina and diminished my strength in some ways. I've had to deal with rotator cuff problems that are painful and limit my mobility. Each problem is significant in it's own way, but together they seem to grow off each other. Now I'm dealing with difficulty transferring, and it's all forcing me to deal with the reality that my level of independence is changing. Honestly, there are days that I feel that my best days are behind me. On those days, I try to remember that what I have learned in those 35 years is that those days go by, and new ones bring new hopes, new challenges and new successes.