HER LIFE WITH MOEBIUS SYNDROME
Read this excellent essay by my FB friend Kelsey Ferrill.  She writes about her life with Moebius...some things she would do differently...and how it has all impacted her.  It is moving and from the heart, and my thanks to her for her permission to quote from it.  Read on:
"I was thinking about the article that I read yesterday and was totally disgusted by it. It was some senator guy in Virginia that said "Children with disabilities are a punishment from God to the mother". Not only was I disgusted to the extreme by this, it made me think. Please bear with me, this might get long and rambling.

I was thinking about this today. When I was younger, I didn't even talk about Moebius. If someone asked me what condition I had or whatever, it embarrassed me and I just did not want to talk about it.

This all changed when I attended the Conference in 2010. That's when I really got involved with the Moebius community. I did not have one friend on Facebook with Moebius and now my Moebius friends make up a good percentage of my friends list and I am eternally grateful for that. Anyway, today I was thinking.. I am not embarrassed by Moebius anymore. I am not ashamed and I am not angry that I have it. Actually, in a way, I am grateful. Yes, I think grateful is a good word. See, everyone's life experiences shapes who they will one day become. I find that I am more compassionate and tolerant, due to what I have been through in my 21 years. I feel that I care more about things that most people my age don't really think about. I am not trying to toot my own horn here, nor am I seeking accolades. I am just telling what I feel personally that Moebius has brought to me.

 I feel that it has made me a much better, more tolerant and stronger person. I truly do believe that. I really passionately care about spreading awareness and education of Moebius and other disabilities because I have seen what lack of education brings. It brings bullying and intolerance. Ignorance breeds ignorace, they say. And that is true. I feel that it is my duty, if you will, as someone who has walked in the shoes of having a disability to spread the word. To get the education out there so that future generations with disabilities will live in a far more tolerant and accepting world than we live in now. I really am trying to make it my mission to spread awareness....

I hope that the younger generations with Moebius will not feel that they are worthless because they have Moebius. I hope they come to the realization that I have just recently come to. Moebius doesn't make our lives worse. No, it enriches our lives. It makes us stronger. It makes us more resiliant. It really does. I have to reiterate this- I am NOT trying to put myself on a pedestal at all. I am telling my experience and I hope that this will help the younger generations with Moebius and i hope that it will also give their parents hope. It took me a while to see the positive things that Moebius has brought to my life and I sincerely hope that everyone else will see that in their own lives.

Moebius is NOT a curse.. It's a blessing. It's a blessing is disguise. Don't let it hold you back! Let your voices be heard. The world is out there, and we can do anything we set our minds to.

I also wanted to add something. A new thought occured to me today. I want to share it with those of you with children with Moebius, but it can apply to everyone. Don't let your fears or insecurities hold you back. I have done this and I want to share this so that no one will look back and regret time wasted, like I have. In high school I think subconsciously I didn't work hard in my classes because I figured that I wouldn't get anywhere with my life anyway because of my speech. You guys have no idea how hard this is for me to talk about but I really want to share my experience and encourage you guys to talk about this amongst yourselves and with your kids. No life is worth wasting and I look back on my high school years and wish I could go back. I don't wish that upon any of you guys and I want everyone to learn from my experiences which is why I am telling you all this. Don't let anything hold you back. Be exactly who you want to be and don't let fears about the future hold you back from achieving your dreams. If you do, you'll surely regret it!

All I can do now is share this experience and also look ahead to the future and not let things hold me back. It's hard but it makes us stronger. It really will, and I hope if anything that at least one person will learn from my mistakes."

Kelsey's story is an excellent example of applying to your life our quote for today:

"Don't let the negativity given to you by the world disempower
you. Instead give to yourself that which empowers you."
-Les Brown