With Parkinson's, it's like you're in the middle of the street and you're stuck there in cement shoes and you know a bus is coming at you, but you don't know when. You think you can hear it rumbling, but you have a lot of time to think. And so you just don't live that moment of the bus hitting you until it happens. There's all kinds of room in that space.
Interpretation
The quote reflects the struggle of facing an inevitable challenge while dealing with a debilitating condition.
Michael J. Fox's quote illustrates the experience of living with Parkinson's disease, describing the feeling of being immobilized by fear and uncertainty as one faces the inevitable challenges ahead. It emphasizes the mental space one occupies while waiting for something unavoidable, allowing for reflection and an appreciation of the moments leading up to a significant event. This resonates with the idea of living in the present despite the foreboding nature of the future.
In practice
During a speech at a charity event focused on neurodegenerative diseases, this quote could effectively illustrate the emotional journey of patients.
I find as long as I acknowledge the truth of something, then that's it. I know what it is and then I can operate. But if I overestimate the downside of something or the challenge of something and I get too obsessed about the difficulty of it, then I don't leave enough room to be open to the upside, the possibility.
My whole life, meeting people is like a blind date, because I feel like they've already seen the video on me.
There are no moments you have frozen in amber. It's moving, it's changing, so appreciate what's good about right now and be ready for what's next.
There's always failure. And there's always disappointment. And there's always loss. But the secret is learning from the loss, and realizing that none of those holes are vacuums.
Certainly people have a lot tougher situations than I've had to deal with. But I will say we are all dying from the moment we are born. This is not just rehearsal.
I'm a dad, I'm a husband, I'm an activist, I'm a writer and I'm just a student of the world.
Every breath I take becomes deeper, and I become more confident of myself without my crutches. The lies I've filled my body and soul with aren't needed anymore. They're not welcome. I choose to live, not just exist.
There's nothing, repeat, nothing to be ashamed of when you're going through a depression. If you get help, the chances of your licking it are really good. But, you have to get yourself onto a safe path.
I realized now that militancy in the best sense of the word was the only answer where the black man was concerned, that any black man who wasn't a militant in 1970 was either blind or a coward.
I fear we have shot our bolt - but we have been to Pole and done the longest journey on record.
The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore.
My dear Excellency! I have not gone to war to collect cheese and eggs, but for another purpose.
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