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.
Be brave as your fathers before you. Have faith and go forward.
I am ready to die for my Lord, that in my blood the Church may obtain liberty and peace.
I have survived. I am here. Confused, screwed up, but here. So, how can I find my way? Is there a chain saw of the soul, an ax I can take to my memories or fears?
The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil constitution, are worth defending against all hazards: And it is our duty to defend them against all attacks.
Power is when we have every justification to kill, and we don't.
You could be a victim, you could be a hero, you could be a villain, or you could be a fugitive. But you could not just stand by. If you were in Europe between 1933 and 1945, you had to be something.
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