When Liability Becomes Ability
Two months before Now
Pink hues of twilight were dissolving into the dark shroud of evening. They were sitting on the lawn , a man in a grey suit with grey hair, while the girl looked hardly sixteen years old.
The air was becoming heavy, carrying the tension between the two
Little beauty, can you be a mermaid? Shawn said in a tone softer than water.
Mermaid... she giggled, and the tears in her eyes became glittering stars.
Are you kidding? And why are you repeating the same thing over and over again Disbelief reflected in her voice.
Nah, I'm serious, Shawn insisted.
Don't drag me into another fantasy Shawn. Look at my feet — are these able to move? Not at all. It's been a year since I took a step. How could I swim?
A long silence stretched between them before Shawn bent a little and held her small hand.
Believe me...please... for once....just for once... I'm more experienced than your age. Please, try it?
She looked convinced ... not because of his words, but because of his firm tone, and maybe because somewhere deep down, she still wanted to believe in miracles.
Okay , for once... but if it doesn't work, you shouldn't force me anymore.
Two years ago
Fourteen-year-old Helena was a normal teen — young, enthusiastic, full of little dreams.
One day, her slipper slipped off while she was walking towards her room. She didn't notice.
But it happened again. This time she sat down and looked at her foot. It was not normal. The bone of her foot was slightly curved from the center.
This was the beginning of the symptoms of CMT (Charcot-Marie-Tooth disorder — a silent genetic disease that usually appears during teenage).
Then, slowly but cruelly, a series of abnormal changes began.
Her makeup brushes slipped from her hands; she couldn't hold her pen with a firm grip anymore.
But what affected her the most were her legs.
The muscles of her shin began to weaken, and her legs started to thin painfully.
Within two years, her legs stopped working completely.
Now, she sits in her wheelchair ...fragile still unbroken , facing her physiotherapist, holding on to the fragments of her old life.
Now
Helena learned to swim and became a real mermaid.
She discovered a new way of living and found happiness in the waters where legs were never needed.It made her forget about her disability or perhaps, it taught her that she was never truly disabled, only different.
The mermaid still hopes to stand again on her legs — and until then, she loves being a mermaid.
CMT is a sleeping gene, and the can be passed on to the next generation, especially in cousin marriages. Sleeping, but not undefeatable, soo be careful becoz not everyone have courage to become a mermaid.
This is a true story of "helenathemermaid"
@owulama , @robiul007 , @ashley-p you guys are invited.
Sukria @abdullahw2