I just want to throw it out there. I MADE IT! On January 9th, 2020 I turned fifty! It doesn’t matter what anyone thinks. It only matters what I think. And I think “Thank you, God! I made it!”
One of my sisters and her husband reserved a hotel room on South Beach so I could wake up and see water, write my goals and begin my 50th year in life. I read a text and one of my friends with my disease wrote, “You made it!” and that’s all it took. I cried.
My friend understood. He knew that we had lost so many friends with Osteogenesis Imperfecta that making it to 50 was a big deal.
In case someone is reading this now or in the future, let me make it clear. I am not saying that no one with OI will make it to 50. There are many who have made it to 50 and they have made it to 60, 70 and 80. I don’t know all of them but I know me. I know my life. I know my health. I know what I’ve been through. I know that making it to 50 is a big deal. I know that people who know me know it too.
But it’s not just making it to 50 that makes it a big deal. It’s the other factors that those who know me realize as well. It’s that I am a college educated, Colombian American with a car, a job, and relatively good health. It’s that I can pay my bills and rent. It’s that I live a pretty independent life and I love dealing with challenges head on.
That’s it for now!