Living with Multiple Sclerosis Changed by Kindness
[Music]
[Applause]
imagine
how would you feel if the doctor told
you
that within 10 years
you would be in a wheelchair and you
would not be able
to recognize the people closest to you
because your brain would face a
cognitive
decline that
is my story
let me take you back when i was in my
20s life was
awesome i just graduated from school
newly promoted newly engaged shopping
for my first house
i had all my goals planned out
and i was so excited to start my
life but along that
cycle i was going through some health
challenges
the tingling in my fingers and toes
were very prominent i was dropping
things so often
i would fall i lost peripheral vision
in my left eye i was forgetful
at the age of 30 i sat in my
neurologist’s office and she showed me
my mri
and all the spots that i had on my brain
many were close to my cerebellum
that was the day that she diagnosed me
with multiple sclerosis
i never imagined that such a young age i
would have
ms a disease
with no cure where my own body attacks
my immune system all of a sudden i felt
like somebody put these opaque
glasses on me where i no longer could
see this future that i had envisioned
i spent many years trying to figure out
how can i find happiness if there isn’t
a cure
i need my goals back i need to be on a
journey to find how i can be happy
i wanted to find happiness
what happened next was my journey
my pursuit of finding
happiness one day i was driving to work
first i dropped my son off at school and
i was
rushing to get to work because i needed
to get to a meeting
and as i was driving and i was speeding
i look in my rearview mirror
guess what i saw red flashing lights and
i
thought uh i’m gonna get another
speeding ticket again
i pull over and i thought maybe it’ll be
a good day after all
maybe the constable will be the same one
i had last time
i envisioned him coming out of his car
with
swagger wearing his uniform
he came to my window and with the female
voice
she said hello ma’am
i fumbled as i was trying to get my
driver’s license
i gave it to her dropped some things she
went back to the police car and i waited
thinking i’m going to be more late
and i waited and i thought i’m for sure
going to be late for my meeting and you
know what
that whole time that i was waiting
she took away all the time that i had
made up speeding
she came back to my car
and she looked at my arm i was wearing
short sleeves that day
and she was she was staring at my arm
you see that night the reason why i was
kind of having a tough morning
was because one of the worst symptoms
that i
feel when my body is in a relaxed state
is i am so itchy that i feel like
someone is pouring bugs
all over me and to relieve
the itching i have a fork in my
nightstand
and i scratch my itches
so hard that sometimes i leave trails of
blood
in my forearm so she looked at the dry
blood
she said i don’t know what you’re going
through
but there’s help out there and i know
you’re a good mom
i saw that picture you dropped when you
were fumbling for your license
is that your son i said yeah he just
turned six
she said he’s beautiful
there are people out there that you can
call if you need it
go ahead so as she gave me my ticket
that was the first time i actually
smiled getting a ticket
as she left i thought to myself wow
she was aware she was aware of what i
was going through and she took time to
be kind
she smiled she lowered the fee of my
speeding ticket
she sent me on my way and as i was
almost at my office i was at a red light
and i looked to my right and there was a
senior old lady there
crying hysterically
she was wiping the tears from beneath
her glasses
i felt compelled to help her i was aware
that she needed
help so i yelled out at her
ma’am are you okay
she shook her head back and forth as she
squinted
to try to see the street signs i didn’t
know what was going on
i just knew that she needed help
so then i yelled again ma’am when the
light turns green
i’m gonna cut in front of you i want you
to follow me into that plaza
that’s exactly what we did
we drove we parked i ran to her window
and i said
are you okay
she said my daughter
is in the hospital having her first
child
at this moment
and her husband left her this morning
i promised my daughter that i would be
there
to help her and she’s alone
can you imagine how i felt
i wanted nothing more than to help her
so i wrote down instructions
i was aware that she needed help and as
i was
writing them down the hospital was so
close i was talking to her
i said you’re going to be there and i
was telling her a little bit about my
life and
and and just kind of breaking the moment
and having her breathe deeply and i said
here’s my business card
on your way to the hospital if you
aren’t feeling well or you get lost
again
i want you to stop at a gas station and
call me i will be there for you
she said thank you and i also told her
that as you’re driving there
i am going to call the hospital and make
sure
that they tell your daughter that you
are on your way
and i will make sure that they know that
you are safe and you will be there
she said thank you she drove off
i got on the hospital and i made sure
that i stayed on that phone with that
volunteer until they came back to me to
say
her daughter is aware she hasn’t yet had
the baby she will soon i said thank you
when i got to work i felt
relieved i thought i was aware of an
opportunity
and i was kind
and that was the day that i finally
found
four words
that brought me happiness you see
kindness goes a long way
it’s a non-medicinal way to heal
within
two months later i received a letter
from her it was the first time that i
had heard
from her i have that letter with me
today
and i would like to share it with you
dear gabriela my angel
i think about you often and how kind you
were to a distressed
old lady thanks to you
i witnessed the birth of my grandson
both the baby and my daughter are fine
thank you for being aware that i
needed help thank you
for being kind here is a little
something
maybe you can get a pedicure or get your
son
something for christmas from
genie
you see jeannie called me
her angel but little did she know
she was mine i found
happiness in four words
the common words in the days proceeding
up to this letter
was be aware be
kind i figured it out
being aware of opportunities around you
doesn’t mean you have to schedule
kindness into your calendar
there are opportunities all around
us that we can take and i realized from
that experience
that every time i did an act of kindness
i felt better and
inside i was healing
kindness is like the ripple effect
if i were to take a stone and whip it
into the water
there would be waves rippling around
that stone and the waves get bigger
and the lily pad over there might do a
little dance
and the birds will sing and the frog
will jump because that’s the energy that
we’ve just
thrown into the water that’s what
kindness is
when we throw kindness it
spreads now kindness it’s nothing new
but the idea of being aware
and then being kind is something that we
can
all look at and take advantage in
you see i gave my son the money that she
had put in the envelope
and he said to me mommy that was really
nice
of what you did i want you to give that
money
to a charity
that’s when the ripple effect started to
unfold that came from a six-year-old who
had a hard time communicating his
thoughts and yet
the police officer was nice to me i was
aware
kind to the lady she was kind back to me
my
son the ripple effect started
and who knows how many other people we
hit see kindness isn’t linear it’s not
like i have to help you and you helped
out me no
when you put it out there it’s gonna
come back to you
one day in some form
and just to prove that point with my son
one day after school when i opened up
his lunch bag
he left me the most beautiful notes he
said
dear mommy everything
was okay except for the rice
you need to put more butter
love john luca
with a little smiley face
now again that’s from a child that had a
hard time communicating and yet
he found a way to be kind with me
and i’m sure that ripple effect took
place
again through his life in school
you see jeannie she definitely was my
angel
she motivated me to start a movement
a kindness movement called be aware
be kind that’s what i was in pursuit of
[Music]
shoveling snow or cutting someone’s
grass without them even asking you to
stopping at a kid’s lemonade stand and
buying a drink
giving your umbrella to a stranger when
it’s raining
sending postcards to sick children in
hospitals
kindness is giving food to a homeless
person
noticing someone who needs help with
directions and approaching them before
they ask you for help
kindness is donating your unused
clothing at small appliances
writing a positive review for someone on
social media without being asked
serving food at a homeless shelter
saying hello and smiling at everybody in
the elevator
and kindness is loving for others what
you love for yourself
kindness is showing your support for a
friend
while walking in a fundraiser
in your neighbors lawn or flowers
saying hi to strangers on the train bus
or subway
donating your glasses and hearing aids
asking someone how are you really doing
and then really listening for a response
volunteering at a charity event
[Music]
raising money for families in need
giving blood
be aware be kind
be aware be kind join us in the kindness
movement
see where it becomes
[Music]
do
[Music]
do you remember when i told you that my
neurologist told me that within 10 years
i would no longer be able to walk and my
brain would suffer cognitive
decline i was diagnosed
15 years ago i’m still standing
and i remembered the speech
thank you thank you think about your
life
what are you going through what do you
want to heal
in your core in your soul do you want to
be happy
if you want to be happy and find healing
please raise your hand
oh yeah all right so then
will you join me in a challenge
will you find an opportunity
to be aware this
week find an opportunity to be
kind is the answer yes
yes yes or yes yes or yes
wonderful that will help you heal i
truly believe in my core in my
soul that i am healing
i will always have ms until there is a
cure
but ms does not have me
i will choose the right attitude i will
be kind to others
because by doing so it allows us to find
happiness
in those four words be aware be kind
i ask you again this week take the
opportunity to be aware
be kind be aware
be aware be aware
thank you