One of the most difficult things for me to do these days, what with having ALS impact my life in so many ways, is to remain positive, to keep an upbeat, happy, good view of the things which happen in life. It would be, and often is, so easy for me to go to the negative, to find the cloud for every silver lining, to focus on what is hard for me in any given situation. When it takes so much out of me to sit, to roll around, to transfer from chair to chair, even to feed myself some days, the downside is forever present, immediately at hand.
Yesterday is a good example. Dollar for dollar, the absolute best entertainment deal for a handicapped person in Calgary are tickets to the CFL Calgary Stampeders games. I can get a ticket for myself for $5.00, a ticket which allows a helper to come in with me for free. Handicapped parking is free as well. So for the grand sum of five bucks, Katherine and I can go to any Stamps home game throughout their season.
The seating is not the best in the house; remember, it's a $5,00 ticket. McMahon Stadium was built in 1960, back in a time when handicapped people simply did not appear in public. We were hidden away, kept from view. No special arrangements were made for us. No access ramps or open seating. In recognition of this oversight, Stampeders management put in a handicapped section in the north end zone, covering it as well, showing a real understanding of the limitations and needs of those of us unable to deal with the weather.
It was the weather that got to me yesterday. Katherine and I went to the Lions/Stamps pre-season game. Here in Alberta the weather can turn nasty in a moment, and yesterday it did, going from mild to miserable in a minute, with rain, hail, wind, lightening, and thunder. The temperature dropped from 12 degrees centigrade to as low as 4 degrees at one point. It went from cool to freezing, with every other bit of nasty associated with that change.
Thanks to the Stampeders management, we were under cover. Unfortunately there is, or rather was, nothing anyone could do about the cold. It's an outdoor stadium. By the time the game was half over, I was so cold, especially in my legs where there is pretty much no circulation, that we decided to go home. Even after I got home my legs and feet remained cold for several hours.
My first reaction was to be kind of bitter about this. For so many other healthy people, they could just walk around and generate some body heat. For so many other healthy people, they did not need an extra blanket wrapped around their legs. For so many other healthy people, the weather passed. For me, none of this was true. I cannot walk; I just got cold and stayed that way. Even the blanket didn't help. And when the air finally started to warm up, I was plain cold right through.
There is an upside here, in all of this. That's what I have to remember. For only five bucks, both Katherine and I got to go to a major league sporting event. Even though we spent nearly $40 on food and coffee, it's still a great night out. My choice is this. Do I complain about what I had to go through, or do I focus on how great it is that I can still do this? Sometimes it's a tougher choice than you might think.
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