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arkallen

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Winter 2010 #9

You might not immediately think that Winston Churchill and Enoch have much in common, but this week's much anticipated arrival of B4 (not B4 time!) reminded me that the same lesson can be gleaned from both.

B4, the fourth incarnation of my original wheelchair, ‘Bugger’, is terrific! Made to order in America and then fitted out locally, B4 is a marvel! Centre wheel drive, fast, sleek, and of course red. B4 is amazingly nimble around the house, with a tight turning circle that allows us to access the smallest rooms. A cunning system keeps all six wheels constantly on the ground, making the ride smooth and stable indoors and over rough terrain. The open road is another thing altogether: we rocket along at a good 10 km/h with a purported range of about 15km. I’m keen to put that to the test! She is worth more than our car, and yet in our day and age the greater part of her cost was met by various departments of our public health system. It's overwhelming.

By rights the new chair probably could have been home-delivered; but my restless independence spoke up, and I quickly volunteered to make the trek by public transport up to the showroom to exchange the hired B3 for the shiny new B4. It's a good hour and a half on three busses - each way - but a mission on public transport is like the call of the wild! And what a delivery it turned out to be. Like all sensible fathers, I maintain a prudent silence regarding the reported trials of childbirth; but nonetheless there was something about B4’s delivery that seemed to me almost obstetric. Too much emotion, and way too much hard work. I well recall an occasion from my childhood when our extended family took delivery of three brand new Volvos on a single day. It was thrilling, even for a child, and surreal as well. The emotions that attend a new car are almost exactly the opposite of those that come with a new wheel chair. A new car is an exciting achievement, something to crow about. A new chair smacks of confinement. A new car carries promise, inspiring confidence in the good times ahead. My new chair instilled in me a sense of panic. What if it’s uncomfortable / inoperable / troublesome / a lemon? The technician and I laboured for two full hours of adjustments to every imaginable function of the chair. Red eyed and depleted, I finally departed the delivery room with the new arrival.

On the way home I found myself looking in shop windows to see how we looked together, B4 and I. It’s startling to see yourself reflected in such circumstances: hard to look at and harder to look away. My own image akin to the glimpse of deformity which both repels and attracts the voyeuristic eye. After weeks of public outings I still don’t quickly recognise my own reflection. Surely that’s not me? How the heck did that happen?

Decades before Churchill became the famed wartime leader of England, a British military officer declared that the 25 year old possessed the two qualities necessary to one day become Prime Minister: “genius and plod”. Genius is given rarely, and to few. But plod – well, that we can all aspire to. I was usually last in line at the door to my infant’s school classroom where we doffed our caps to greet the teacher. I don't know why, I just seemed to always wind up there. Eventually though I finished school right near the top of the pile. The secret, not that it's much of a secret, is to keep plodding on. One foot after the other. Or one wheel behind the other; if that’s what it takes.

This is where old Enoch fits in: a poignant tale from ancient biblical history of a man who, it is said, "walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away". The original plodder, Enoch discovered that the path to heaven is one of companionship and constancy. Just stay close; just keep walking; just see where you end up. There is simplicity, purity, even holiness to persistence. A Pilgrim needs only to take the next step, absorbed not by the destination, but by the journey. Fear comes from gazing too far down the unknown path, and regret from a backward glance. Peace is found in doing the next thing. And then the next, and the next after that.

Since the delivery we are seldom far apart, B4 and I. There’s even a night feed we do together now and then: tea in the wee small hours of sleeplessness. B4 has been home for almost a week, and I think we are getting to know one another. I’d say we are even bonding! We might not be in quite the same class of plodders as the two venerables; but I’m mindful of Churchill’s signature acronym, KBO!

“Keep Buggering On”. A little rough round the edges perhaps, but like the original christening of Bugger, the language is appropriately inappropriate. It’s a good motto for B4 and I. However you do it, by foot or by wheel, KBO!
 
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Re: kbo

Dear Roderick, As always, this is so well written with great thought. I'd never heard Churchill's "genius and plod" attributes stated. But the truth of it is clear. Most of us just plod. I hope B4, which couldn't have been planned better as the name of your "permanent power chair" serves you well and long. It may have been to your benefit that you had it adjusted at the showroom, where it took time to finesse, but hopefully was done very well.

Do you read Oswald Chambers? If not, check out the Christian thread on page 50, post #737, the part that includes, ". God is not working towards a particular finish; His end is the process - that I see Him walking on the waves, no shore in sight, no success, no goal,..." which goes very well with your, "A Pilgrim needs only to take the next step, absorbed not by the destination, but by the journey." And I believe the saying, "keep hoeing your row" when bad news arrives is more or less the same idea. We live in an upside down world. KBO!
Ann
 
Re: kbo

Yes Ann, KBO!
 
Re: kbo

Roderick,

This line is going to become my new mantra. "Fear comes from gazing too far down the unknown path, and regret from a backward glance."

You never cease to entertain and enlighten me. KBO my friend, KBO.

Dick
 
You are trully a gift to this forum and our ALS community. Bless you and KBO!
 
Roderick, as always it's a pleasure to read your posts. I will be ordering my first pwc in a few weeks and am curious as to what make and model you got.

Thanks,

Jim
 
thank you Roderick. Your posts are like an unexpected present in the mail. KBO
 
Duck, Missy, Jim, Tomby.....
Thank you all for your encouragement.
KBO!
 
Ann, Oswald Chambers as you mentioned is so very good. I thought it was worth coppying here:

We are apt to imagine that if Jesus Christ constrains us, and we obey Him, He will lead us to great success. We must never put our dreams of success as God's purpose for us; His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have an idea that God is leading us to a particular end, a desired goal; He is not. The question of getting to a particular end is a mere incident. What we call the process, God calls the end.

What is my dream of God's purpose? His purpose is that I depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay in the middle of the turmoil calm and unperplexed, that is the end of the purpose of God. God is not working towards a particular finish; His end is the process - that I see Him walking on the waves, no shore in sight, no success, no goal, just the absolute certainty that it is all right because I see Him walking on the sea. It is the process, not the end, which is glorifying to God.

God's training is for now, not presently. His purpose is for this minute, not for something in the future. We have nothing to do with the afterwards of obedience; we get wrong when we think of the afterwards. What men call training and preparation, God calls the end.

God's end is to enable me to see that He can walk on the chaos of my life just now. If we have a further end in view, we do not pay sufficient attention to the immediate present: if we realize that obedience is the end, then each moment as it comes is precious.
 
Jim,

My new chair is a Quickie Pulse 6. Ive had it just a week, and I trialed one innitially for only a few days. Im very pleased with it; its far better than the other chairs that I have used. The features I like most are it's small 'footprint', ie a very tight turning circle and a narrow width that make it great around the house. It has an excellent controll mechanism (I guess that means everything from the 'stick' through to the motors) that is smooth, easy to steer. The speed can also be adjusted from one to five while moving. I had another chair where you had to stop physically to change speed and it was tedious. I guess any new chair would have good batteries, but I appreciate the long range this chair has. The Quickie is also much more adjustable than the other chairs that I have tried. So adjustable that it is taking a fair bit of getting right, but Im pretty sure that with the good advice of the therapist and the technician the result will be great. Mid wheel drive is, I think, the best system, although it can get stuck more easily in wet grass or loose gravel.

Just for interest, the other chairs I have used are a "Rascal", a chair I borrowed that could be about 10 years old. Rear wheel drive and very manouverable but old school with a pretty basic seat.

I trialed a Quantum, a pretty big chair with 4 pole motors (the Quickie has 2 pole motors) that was extreemly fast but difficult to controll. I think there was something amiss with the controll settings as it fish-tailed constantly. It was too wide for some of the narrow doors in my home. A big, robust chair.

I hired a 'Jazzy' for several weeks waiting delivery of the new chair. I cant recall the model. I think youd have to call it forward wheel drive, although it had two small wheels out infront that were like shock absorbers. It was a cumbersome chair I found, the back end seemed to swing out wildly. It had a reclining seat which I miss.

Hope your chair is a good experience Jim; I find using a pwc is fantastic, the world has opened up wonderfully in the last few weeks and I get much more done around home than I could otherwise.

R.
 
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