Tanto

I read an analogy once by a paraplegic. He concluded that down to about mid-chest he was himself, below that was some guy he had no control over named Ervine. I liked the idea and applied it to my own life. Since my other half is constantly crossing his legs Indian style, I gave him the name Tanto.

This leaves me with control of my head, mostly, and Tanto with pretty much everything else. When I talk to older kids and adults, it works as a good illustration as to what everyday life is like. I can see everything below my head, but can't control any of it.

Every day I watch Tanto kick, slap, grope, and pinch those trying to take care of me. I do have ways of keeping him under control, but they only go so far. One of my assistants has taken the idea a step farther and named every limb. It can get somewhat comical talking to different limbs telling them to behave. However, they rarely listen since I keep control of the ears.

Living in a body I can't feel or control gets to be very frustrating some days. Having fun with the situation can greatly help to make light of what can be taken as a complete negative.

Throughout my life, I hear every now and then about breakthroughs in spinal cord injury research toward a cure. I honestly don't believe that will happen in my life, at least not for old timers like me. I do look forward to the day when I will be finished with this body and be fully restored in glory. Until that day, I just continue to live the quad life as given.