Life Happens: Believe, Accept, and Understand

“Life always waits for some crisis to occur before revealing itself at its most brilliant.” Paulo Coelho

“Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.” Marie Curie

Believe in yourself, as you live with/through ______ [you fill-in-the-blank (for me, it’s Parkinson’s)]:
I believe that staying hopeful allows me to better understand my Parkinson’s.
I believe that being persistent will help me resist progression of my disorder.
I believe that remaining positive is life re-affirming.
I believe that having strength/courage enables me to live-forward.
I believe that self-pity fuels the fire of my Parkinson’s.
I believe in the power of education.
And I believe in the amazing support of my family/loved-ones, friends, students, colleagues, and health-care team.

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” Theodore Roosevelt

“Believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact.” William James

“Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.” Christian D. Larson

Accept the cards you are dealt, but you decide how to play the hand with ______ [you fill-in-the-blank (for me, it’s Parkinson’s)]:
I accept my Parkinson’s, but I refuse to let it define me.
I accept that my future days will range from great to not-so-great, yet I won’t make excuses.
I accept my future life and will use my educational credentials to inform others about Parkinson’s.
I accept the challenge of living with the insidious Parkinson’s, and its subtle evolving manner.
I accept that my life, work, and leisure time will remain focused for years to come with my disorder in the background.
And I accept and acknowledge the wonderful encouragement of my family/loved-ones, friends, students, colleagues, and health-care team.

“You have to accept the storms and the rainy days and the things in life that you sometimes don’t want to face.” Bai Ling

“You have to accept whatever comes and the only important thing is that you meet it with courage and with the best that you have to give.” Eleanor Roosevelt

“Accept responsibility for your life. Know that it is you who will get you where you want to go, no one else.” Les Brown

Understand that your life may be challenged by obstacles like ______ [you fill-in-the-blank (for me, it’s Parkinson’s)]; however, it’s still your life to lead:
I understand my journey ahead; although I may stumble occasionally, I will get up and keep going-working-living.
I understand my future involves listening to many different experts; using, learning, and embracing their advice.
I understand my biggest ally is me; and my ability to balance and manage life minute-to-minute, day-by-day.
I understand my success in mastering my Parkinson’s will require constant effort because it will never ever take-a-day-off.
I understand my future is full of life and wholeheartedness; by staying involved, I can try to handle the advancing subtle adversity.
I understand that I must stay educated/informed of advances on neurodegenerative disorders; I am convinced that better therapies and cures are coming.
And I understand the strength of constant help from my family/loved-ones, friends, students, colleagues, and health-care team.

“Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.” Gail Devers

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” Marie Curie

“People fear what they do not understand.” A.J. Darkholme

Life Happens- Believe, Accept, and Understand: The path our lives take are all different/varied; how we accomplish the journey is how our lives live out. At times, life is figuring out how to hit the best curve ball pitcher in baseball. Whether we hit or miss the pitched ball, life happens; and it can be easy/hard, simple/complicated, happy/sad, successful/unsuccessful, and healthy/sick.

We must believe we have all the ingredients available to overcome the challenges in our lives. We must accept that obstacles may exist; but like any speed breaker, the road of life will (hopefully) smooth out just ahead. We must understand that our lives can remain full while we deal with adversity; remember the sun usually follows the summer’s afternoon thunderstorm.

And don’t forget to thank and acknowledge those along the way in your journey, including your family/loved-ones, friends, and colleagues (for me I add students and health-care team). Stay hopeful, positive, persistent, strong/courageous, educated, happy, and loving while your life happens.

understand2