Sometimes in Life Things Don’t Always go According to Plan

As we are growing up and getting to the end of our schooling, deciding what we want to do with our lives we plan everything.  We decide things like...Do I go to university or start working or maybe travel?  What do I study?  What will I do for a living?  I did exactly that and had my whole life planned out...or so I thought.  But just remember...things don't always go according to plan.

I planned my working life, joining the Toronto Police Force, following in the footsteps of my parents.  Moving through different areas of "The Job" and thinking that this would be my lifelong career.  But remember...things don't always go according to plan.

I found that I was tired of "The Job", travelled to Australia to figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of my life and ultimately met my husband.  A move halfway around the world was the next step.  This was certainly not what I had expected in my life but remember...things don't always go according to plan!

On April 23rd, 1998 at 2:15 p.m. I was bluntly told "You have MS, go home and put your affairs in order before you become incapacitated".  Boy things certainly don't always go according to plan!

With all these changes in our life's plan, the actual changes aren't important but the way we deal with them is.  Everyone has their own challenges, but it is the way we look at them that make them either good or bad and life isn’t always going to be fair.  I have always looked at the glass as half full instead of half empty.  We can decide to curl up and die or we can embrace them.  How we deal with those changes is what is really going to make the difference. I have decided that life is like a game of cards, it’s not being dealt a good hand but more so the ability to play a poor hand well. 

By looking at my MS diagnosis in this way I have been able to move on with life and accomplish things I never thought possible.  I have certainly learned the art of doing just that, play this poor hand I have been dealt really well. I am sure that this drives some of my friend’s nuts at time, but I believe it is how I have learned to cope with living with a disease like Multiple Sclerosis.

Being diagnosed with MS has made me not put things off, made me try new things, look at all that happens around me and enjoy my life.

I honestly believe that the happiest of people in the world do not have the best of all, they simply appreciate what they find on their way and the most exciting moments in our lives come to us when we are living and doing for others.  I believe that the greatest gift we can possibly give to another is a portion of ourselves. 

It is so important in life to grasp every opportunity that comes your way, never give in to self-doubt, ignore critics and chase your dreams. 

Remember that sometimes in life things don’t always go according to plan and to be honest that might be a really good thing!