Getting Lucky Because of MS

The other day, I playfully joked about getting mauled by bears because I was the slowest in our group—nature’s way of culling the herd—haha, so funny. Then I went to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. You know, where they have actual bears. And on our FIRST stroll in the parks, BEFORE purchasing bear spray, a woman ran up to us, breathless and panicked. “They tell you not to run. BUT I HAD TO RUN.” Then she pointed behind her. Jesus, she was talking about a bear. 

My only weapon was a removable armrest on my wheelchair, which I reasoned I could wedge into a grizzly’s jaws if I timed it juuust right. GRRR-chunk! Then the bear would wander cluelessly as it now had a wheelchair armrest stuck in its maw, inspiring onlookers to film the hilarity, and BOOM: the video would go viral with Dave the hero! I also made a mental note to maybe not joke about bear mauling just before going into bear country… without bear spray. 

Moments before I could tell Laura and our new friend to “save yourselves, go on without me” a ranger rounded the bend. The adolescent black bear was just as scared of us as we were of it and had scampered off. Crisis averted. For now. After all, we still had a week for me to get unceremoniously culled. But since you are reading this, I not only survived our adventure, I experienced a stunningly priceless moment thanks, ironically, to my multiple sclerosis. 

Video Blog: Thank You, MS!? So there I was, on the toilet, in the middle of Yellowstone National Park, when I had a life-altering experience that would eventually bring me to near tears. And it happened only because I have this damn disease. As much as multiple sclerosis can take away things, it can give you some things back. So I took it and ran/rolled with it! This is my first vlog on adventures with MS, and it includes a couple epic on-location shots of my Yellowstone escapade. I hope you enjoy my adventure as much as I did!