For 30 days, I will share the joys, pains, and dirty little secrets of my life with multiple sclerosis. My goal is to find a reason to convince you to support/share my fight against MS. Please donate today: http://main.nationalmssociety.org/goto/eleanor.
This is Effort Number 21…
“Dum spiro, dimico”
“While I breathe, I will fight”
This simple Latin phrase epitomizes who I am, my dedication to this cause, and, ultimately, the man I was destined to be. I understand that’s a bold claim, especially for someone who does not believe in fate or destiny.
Let me explain…
Who I am
“Dimico” is more than just a physical confrontation or altercation. “Dum spiro, dimico” highlights the fact that, as a man diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, I will have to struggle/contend/strive with a mountain of issues completing basic tasks for as long as I am alive.
Indeed, for as difficult as my life becomes, as debilitating as my disease progresses, I will have to struggle/contend/strive/fight. There is no option for me, not out of determination on my part — my MS will not stop hitting me.
For as easy and as lavish as my life becomes, I will still have to struggle/contend/strive/fight. No matter how far medical advances and treatments progress, if MS exists within, it will keep hitting me.
While I breathe…this will never end. If I don’t fight, I won’t breathe
My dedication to this cause
Never Stop... Never Quit... epitomizes the single caveat to my above message of lost hope. The resiliency I possess is a trait I was born into, gifted, taught and mentored – dedication I found, created, forged and polished. I was given its meaning, then I formed the words:
Because it is a fight.
The fight is not over and it won’t be over until a cure is found.
It will never stop…nor will we
It will never quit…nor will we
This is why we ride!
Never Stop… Never Quit…
Never Stop... Never Quit... is tattooed on my right forearm as a reminder. The claim made represents more than just a mantra, a trademark, a foundation, and a dedication to this cause. My tattoo is from a blog post on September 5, 2014 (I Can Feel Myself Becoming Right Handed). I’m reminded constantly how my handwriting is worse than it was before…if MS exists within, it will keep hitting me.
Every day, I look at the tattoo and think, “That’s what I want my legacy to be!”
The man I was destined to become
Above the Never Stop... Never Quit... tattoo is my family crest - my other reminder. Generations before me determined this was to be their mark – my birthright. My struggles were not predestined, just as my future is not assured. I wear the brand today because my family centuries ago permitted me to do so.
Every day, I look at the tattoo and think, “That’s what I want my legacy to be!”
“Certavi et Vici”
“I have fought and conquered”
I hope my stories will inspire you to donate to my fight.
Because it is a fight.
The fight is not over and it won’t be over until a cure is found.
It will never stop…nor will we
It will never quit…nor will we
This is why we ride!
Please donate today: http://main.nationalmssociety.org/goto/eleanor
100% of the royalties earned from my books go to the National MS Society, to support our fight: http://neverstopneverquit.com/books
Never Stop… Never Quit…®
Kevin Byrne
Portland, OR
Never Stop… Never Quit… Reg. U.S. Pat. & Tm. Off.
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