Tatyanna's Hope

Two years ago today we received Tatyanna's diagnosis of LINCL. In the time since, I have learned to become a researcher and advocate, I have become stronger than I ever thought possible. I have learned that it's ok to live in the moment, to let go of what or who is not important and to celebrate the small things. I've seen that there is light and hope and beauty in the darkest places and that sometimes the miracle you pray for is not the miracle that you receive but that they are all around you .....you just have to look -sometimes really really hard. :)

As put, rather insightfully, by one of the other Batten parents, "our children aren't dying from Batten Disease, they are living with it." (thanks for the awesome quote Nikki!) I love this quote because it eloquently sums up how we as a family strive to live. I believe that if we focus on the negative then the disease wins and our losses will be far greater than the obvious. That isn't to say that there aren't bad days, that there aren't times when the pain threatens to overwhelm and the very act of getting out of bed is a supreme effort of will. I'm human, after all, there are days when my strength falters and my spirit is tired. But, I have to remember, this isn't about me....it's about a little girl with more courage and heart than I have ever seen in another human. It's about a little girl who once radiated enough energy that she almost seemed to sparkle. It's about my sweet daughter who at the end of being poked and prodded for the millionth time still had it in her to smile and want to give out hugs to anyone around. Because of her, at this moment, I choose to aknowledge what is good. Even when things look their bleakest, there is still love and laughter and life.