I love Mardi Gras. I have gone to the parades for all of my life. I have been blessed to ride in the parades. The riders throw beads, cups, stuffed animals, doubloons and other trinkets to the crowd. The entire event is a love affair of the city.
The parades go on for about 10 consecutive days. Last year my wife went to see her mother in Alabama, and our daughter and I went to a neighborhood parade that got expanded to three consecutive parades because of rain on previous days.
I parked five blocks away. Even though I had MS, five blocks was not that big of a challenge. I had some stumbling moments in the past, but no major problems.
I was fooling myself. I took the cane and failed to use it as we walked down the very poorly maintained streets of New Orleans.
We made it to the parade route and all was great. The people were nice. They gave my daughter and me drinks and food because the hour-long event went to three hours. I sat down on the curb and got along with everyone. My daughter made fast friends and everyone had a great time.
We had caught a garbage bag of stuff at the parades. Our daughter was so pleased with her catches she could fly. I know this neighborhood. I may not know the individuals, but I know where I am.
Realize that New Orleans was coasting on an incredible high. The New Orleans Saints football team had just won the Super Bowl and the city was full of love.
We walked and I stumbled. I got better set and walked on towards the car. About another half block and I was down on the sidewalk. I started to crawl towards a Dodge pickup truck. I would crawl, regain energy and get to my car.
I could not have been prouder of our 10-year-old daughter. She was a trooper and maintained calm in a horrific situation of her dad falling on the ground.
Then New Orleans came up big. I was crawling towards the truck, and someone got someone else and suddenly this young lady, a nursing student, pulled up to take the two of us to our car.
Total strangers stepped up and brought us back to the car.
I am eternally thankful to those helped me in a moment of extreme need.
Shortly, I filed for disability and began looking for new solutions beyond Tysabri for MS.
I was on Tysabri at the time, and my condition had deteriorated to a new low.
Within weeks, I began to work towards getting CCSVI.
So through tragedy, good turns of life can be presented.
The first good turn was when a place I loved gave me more love than I will ever know.
I have through my life tried to be the giver of love to those in need, and just the memory makes me cry.
My little girl and I drove to a restaurant, had dinner and drove home.
The next challenge is to see another parade. I will go again. Mardi Gras is something I want to experience again. This year I will probably not go to a parade. But next year I want to attend parades with the kids.
My life has been filled with goals. Marriage. Children. Home.
My next goal of going to a parade is somewhat selfish, but I want to just stand before a parade and feel the love.
And I will do it with the help of my family.