Important Traditions

     
     I have always taught my children that no matter where we lived, family was very important and tradition goes along with this. I passed the stories along with these traditions, why and how we celebrate.

      I was worried because we were in a condo now that some of these traditions would be lost. My son was going away for the Easter weekend.  I thought, “What kind of celebration is this going to be?” Remember, I said in my last Blog about us being different and if people offer their help with projects it has to be under their terms. But, the family came through for me once again and proved what is important, "they got it" 

     We have been making Easter Bread in my family for over 100 years.  My son and son-in-law arranged it so that they would come over before my son went away and set the bread. When my daughter got off work would come and bake it. I was so happy that I did not have to say anything and that they realized this tradition is very important to me, to us, it is part of our heritage.  This recipe can be a lot of work; but since the MSA is progressing I cannot mix, or stir the ingredients. Cracking the eggs is very difficult. I cannot get the coordination to crack them with a knife or fork, and I do not have the strength in my arms to knead the bread, but my kids came and did all that for me. We learned to improvise and make only what we needed, I thank God for them. Usually, I give a lot away, but the important thing this year was getting it made.

     Spring and Easter is a celebration of new life. We usually have lots of family and lots of food. My sister had a potluck to celebrate. I tease her because she is the only one who has a potluck but makes enough food for all those invited in case some forgets to bring what they promised.

      There were 19 of us, all family, except the grand parents of my sister’s daughter-in-law. I know how very hard it is for an older person to see a younger person with MSA. You wouldn’t know anything was wrong with me unless try to walk or talk and the “New Normal” shows. That is what we refer to having MSA symptoms now, “the new normal”. With MSA it does not discriminate. Between male, females, color or what you do for a living, we need someone famous to bring this disease to the forefront. There are a lot of clinical trials we do not qualify for (at least this has been my experience) because we have MSA (document) and not Parkinson. The only way to confirm MSA is a brain biopsy when you die and if not it is listed that the person’s passing is Parkinson related, is this not contradiction?  

     While we are celebrating the new growth and life this spring brings, let’s find a way to bring life to finding a cure for this terrible disease called Multiple System Atrophy.