Saturday March 10th I participated in the Muscle Walk for MDA put on by our local chapter. It was a great event with hundreds of people turning out to support MDA and the families that they serve. Our team was small but enthusiastic and we had fun being together at the walk. Obviously the primary goal of an event such as this is to raise money to help fight neuromuscular disease. However there is another tremendous benefit to families like ours that attend and it can be very impactful in its own right. What I’m referring to is the emotional lift that comes from congregating with people who are in a similar circumstance and knowing that you are not alone in this battle. Sometimes I can go months at a time without being around other special needs families and everywhere I go i.e. the neighborhood park, the mall, school visits, etc are constant reminders that my daily routine as a dad is different than most other dads. After a while it does begin to wear on me and it feels sometimes that I’m living an experience that no one else understands. It is when I have the opportunity to just be in the presence of other families and specifically dads who are taking this journey right along with me that I feel “normal” again. Some are farther along the path and some are just starting out but no matter what stage we are at it's great to have events that bring us together for a few hours so we can recharge and renew for the road ahead.
