wrote this for wearefibro.org 2008

I can…

I will not bend over & take the pain.

I will tie my children’s shoes on my bad knees & with my achey fingers, & smile for them.

I will play catch & dive for that ball, even if it means an icepack & drugs later.

I will take apart legos for my son with my achey fingers.

I will hang on the monkey bars & show my son that it can be done, all the while the pain is shooting down my back.

I will sew a button onto my husband’s pants, even if it takes me 2 hours because my fingers won’t hold the needle tight.

I will cuddle with my boys on the couch & watch their favorite superhero movie in surround sound even though my migraine is making my head pound.

Although my family knows I have pain, I will not sit & watch them enjoy each other.

If I can give birth I can take this.

There will be flares, & tremors, & shakes, & tears.

However, I will not trade them for the rest.

I am woman, sister, daughter, granddaughter, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, aunt, wife, lover, partner, mother, future mother-in-law/grandmother.

Because of these, my pain will not win. Even on the hard days I say “Bring it on”,

Because I Can…

[Via http://prappleye.wordpress.com]