On Thursday 07 Mar 2002 9:28 pm, Cleveland, Kyle E. wrote:
> OHHHHH YEAAAAAHHHH!!!!!  As you read through my later posts you'll
> find how I really screwed things up with my family.  You bring up
> another excellent point that some of the dads or younger men on the
> list might heed:  think about how over-use of your body/talents
> will affect your (potential) spouse and children.  My youngest will
> be four in April.  What will my capabilities be like when he's
> fourteen?  Laura has leukemia (currently in remission) and I have
> CP--are our kids going to be caregivers for their parents and their
> own children at the same time?

I find this a bit sad. I've always tended to burn the candle at both
ends, in fact I've always considered it my "duty" to do so. I've only
got this one life, there's an awful lot to cram in. Sure my body is
showing signs of falling apart, but the same is true for many of my
friends without CP who have crammed their life to the full. In all
relationships there is a balance, and its all about time allocation,
but its not about "how long" you spend with each person its about
giving them sufficient amount of your own time to enable them to have
a fulfilling life themselves. On Sunday I spent 6 hours at a Rugby
Tournament with my 13 yr old in a freezing gale, I knew it would kill
my back, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't do it. MY time starts
about midnight each night when I get to do neat things on my computer
(nerd!).

> Yes, Joanne, I've done a lot of neat things (I should post the pix
> to prove it), but in hindsight they might have been foolishly
> self-serving.  If I'd known then....I either would have remained
> single or more sedentary.

I wouldn't tell the teenagers/twenty somethings that, I'd say grab
every opportunity that comes your way, bust a gut to make sure those
opportunities do keep coming. I do understand your points re:
balancing the desire to excel against putting enough time into
personal relationships, and your horrific achilles injury from
Paralympic Cycling, but these seem to be arguments against developing
too much singlemindedness, to retain an eye on the many things which
life has to offer, rather than a purely CP/ageing related argument.

> My parents and brother are all over-achievers.  For an AB, this
> might be a good thing, but a gimp is going to be a "shooting star"
> if he follows their lead.
>
> My tuppence.
>
> -Kyle
>
> (Kat--I'll get some photos together this weekend and put them up on
> the web. It will prove to Ken, at least, that my shoes aren't
> brown!  LOL! )
>

My .034 Euros.

Cheers

Deri