Struggle, Battle, which is it?

Last night the kids and I went to a ballet where a portion of the proceeds were going to go to the diabetic care needs at the local hospital.  It was being done because one of the dancers battles Type 1 Diabetes.  During the performance, I was thinking about the term battle.  When I hear the word battle, I think of a war where there is a winner and a loser.  Is that what it is like for a person with diabetes?  Is there going to be a winner and a loser?  I think of people with cancer.  You always hear that "they are battling breast cancer."  But with cancer, people go into remission and they essentially win the battle.  Do people with diabetes ever really win?  This is a daily struggle, a daily fight.  Sometimes diabetes ends up winning but does the person who has it wins? People with diabetes have a tougher time when they get other illnesses.  Diabetes makes it more difficult to fight illnesses.

Less than two months after Nathanael was diagnosed, I was speaking with a lady that I have known most of my life.  Her son has diabetes.  I referred to Nathanael as a diabetic.  She told me that she never refers to her son as a diabetic.  He HAS diabetes.  Diabetes doesn't define who he is.  She was right.  I think about this often and remind Nathanael that diabetes is an illness that he has, the illness doesn't have him. Nathanael IS a 12 year old boy.  He IS very musical.  He plays 3 instruments, the baritone, tuba, & trombone.  He IS very smart.  He IS also very athletic.  He HAS an auto immune disease called type 1 diabetes.

Nathanael considers his diabetes frustrating, not a battle.   I certainly don't consider it a battle.  Unless there is a cure, there isn't going to be a winner or a loser, If I have anything to say about it.  If there has to be a winner, it won't be diabetes.  Nathanael is tougher that this terrible disease that has taken over and forever changed the way we look at food.