"I Am. . .So Much More Than You See!"

CAMARADERIE, LOVE, SPIRIT and HOPE. These are the four words I would use to describe what I felt yesterday at the annual Energy for Life Walk in Cherry Hill, NJ. I love participating in this walk because it raises awareness, and raises funds to help patients and their families affected by Mitochondrial Disease. It also motivates me to walk a mile, which for some people is a walk in the park (no pun intended) but for me is a very challenging task due to my Mitochondrial Disease. I was actually nervous that I would not even be able to complete the mile this year because my legs have recently been getting extremely tired when I walk even short distances. However, I was determined to do this mile for all those people with Mitochondrial Disease who cannot walk a mile. It was also my personal goal to walk the mile without any rests so that people could actually see the affects on my body when my mitochondria run out of energy. I did it!!!! With the help of my team behind me and my dad be...

Sometimes the best things in life take patience to accomplish. My patience was definitely tested this weekend as my mom and I traveled to Tucson, Arizona to meet my service dog in training. After spending time with Einstein and the trainer on Thursday we quickly realized that he was not going to be the right match for me. One of the reasons is that he was too short to be able to help with my balance and walking. Unfortunately, this is the second service dog that has not worked out but I am determined to wait for the perfect dog to meet my needs. This weekend I heard so many stories from the trainer about dogs that have changed people’s lives. The most heartwarming part of our trip is that Einstein will now go to a Veteran that has been searching for a service dog for two years. I am so happy for this twenty-eight year old Veteran who started crying when he heard the news. While I am disappointed that Einstein #2 did not work out, I met a puppy this weekend that will...