Life has a way of giving you a massive reality check at times though doesn't it?
On Friday I was told that Val Franklin had passed away, then on Sunday we found out that Rob Burrow had lost his battle against the disease. A stark reminder that at present there is only one winner when MND is involved.
I'm guessing that some of you reading this may well have known Val and so are fully aware of the lovely person she was. I first met her next to the 18th green at Rushcliffe Golf Club, as we waited for a group of ladies to finish a '72 holes in a day challenge'. Raising money for Stand Against MND. Val was one of the first people I'd met in person who also had MND. At that time I was visibly more advanced in my progression than Val, in my powered wheelchair and reliant on my ventilator. A casual observer would never have known we had the same illness.
Val would later tell me that she found that first meeting quite difficult. Looking at me was frightening, like seeing what the future could hold. To their enormous credit, Val and her husband Pete agreed to come over for a cup of tea to pick my brains about my journey. Nobody ever warns you about the mountains of admin that come with a degenerative disease, and if you don't keep up with it at your end you might not get the help you need. I'd been through a lot of it and I hope had a few useful tips.
Opening up and wanting that information takes immense courage. It shows in my view an acceptance of your circumstances, and a determination to make the most of the time you have. I'm so pleased that Val and I shared that outlook.
You would never have known what we were discussing based on the amount of laughter in the room. I was left with that familiar feeling of confusion as to why MND seems to attack such lovely people.
Val and her family became and remain stellar supporters of the charity, and I would frequently see them at the monthly golf club quizgo (highly recommended if you enjoy trivia and are of course willing to donate any winnings to a local charity...)* Val always had a smile and a chat whilst Pete always had a one liner at the ready.
*Not compulsory
Over time we saw each other less and less as we both found spending time out and about more challenging, until I heard the news last Friday. RIP Val, it was lovely to know you. All my love to the Franklin family.
A life with MND, particularly when you are integrated with patient communities on line and in person, means that losing people is tragically a frequent occurrence. A consistent reminder of your own proximity to death.
So how to react to such sobering news on such a regular basis? I remember I am alive. I have opportunity. I love. I laugh, I strive, I experience. In Vals honour, in Robs honour, for all the fallen warriors I've lost along the way,
I will live the most significant life I can muster.
Nothing else matters
1637 comments
Dr. Olu brought my wife back! After months of separation, his powerful love spell restored my marriage in just a few days. If you want your ex back, contact Dr. Olu now on WhatsApp: +2347078300489. or visit his website: https://doctor-olu-spell-temple.b12sites.com/. He is truly a life-saver!
Hello everyone i am here to share this wonderful experience with you all of how i got a permanent cure to my herpes virus 1/2 with help of this great man dr udebhulu who uses his natural born talent to eradicate this terrible virus with his natural herbal cure medicine at first i didn’t believe this until i got tested free of my long suffering herpes virus and now i’m here sharing this great and amazing testimony to the world and if you are out there with this same health issue i urge you to contact dr udebhulu here drudebhuluherbalhome@gmail.com or call +2349032276724 And also he specializes in curing ENDOMETRIOSIS, PCOS, OVARIAN CYST, INFERTILITY, DIABETES 1/2, HEPATITIS A,B,C, COLD SORE, FIBROID, MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, URTICARIA HIVES & ANGIOEDEMA, HANTAVIRUS, CANCER of all kinds, and so many other infections and diseases
Recover Your Funds Today With Intel Fox Recovery Services
If you have come across my review, then be assured you are 1 step away from successfully recovering your lost crypto funds. I unknowingly lost $179,000 in bitcoin through a terrible Forex deal. I was at a loss got confused and started to think on what to do next. I thought I had forfeited all of my savings, but thankfully I came across Intel Fox Recovery Services, experienced cyber hacking agents that assists in recovering lost bitcoin investments. To my utter surprise, after working with Intel Fox Recovery, I was able to recover all of my lost funds within a short period of time. Having them on your side is really great and beneficial, in my opinion. You don’t need to be afraid or concerned if you have been taken advantage of by phoney Forex brokers since Intel Fox Recovery are here to help. Reach to them directly at: intelfoxrecovery (@) mail(.)com. These Fund Recovery agents are Legal and you can talk to them and ease the pain you feeling and get everything you lost back.
Thank you Metronet Credit Solution for helping me fix my credit score. I suffered setback on health ground that affected my credit score drastically in the year 2023. Rebuilding my credit score became a nightmare because i was already into medical collections, loans that I couldn’t pay back after my recovery in 2024, this became a very serious challenge for me, had to go online shuffling for a reputable company that could help fix my credit to no avail. On 26th of July,2025, a friend in Texas reached out to me, I complained what I was passing through, and he recommended this amazing company which I gave a shoot. I reached out to this company on 15th of August, 2025 for help,and this amazing company promised to fix my credit score after about 20mins conversation with the company, they assured to fix my credit score, delete late payments,and all negative items on my reports showing across credit bureau! Couldn’t believe it initially because it was too good to be true. Wow! to my greatest surprise, I was asked to verify and confirm my new credit score across the 3 credit bureau, and I did as directed only to see an amazing excellent credit score with all my negative items cleared, it was like a magic but then, I refused to recommend their services because I want to be very sure it was going to work out and I kept monitoring the new credit score to see if it will drop but it never dropped. Just last week Thursday, I applied for a loan from a credit firm that was into loan and got approved from same loan company that turned me down late last year. Thank you Metronet for all your help. Kindly reach via: WhatsApp or Email: METRONETCREDITSOLUTION@GMAIL.COM. Don’t forget to mention that Mr. Roger Morgan recommended their services to you.
At this point in life, bad situation emerge for us to learn our mistakes and figure out what next is to be done. I’m really delighted I eventually found a real competent hacker after been spammed by several sham hackers I followed their Bogus recommendation. Never knew that my wife Had a son out of wedlock without informing me about it for almost 12years of our relationship until I noticed she picks strange calls on her phone and send some money to strange man. As much as it is inappropriate to spy on one’s spouse phone it’s also necessary to be sure that your relationship is in perfect shape. All my gratitude goes to this Genuine GeniusHacker-:jamesmckaywizard at gmail dot com who got to clone/hack her phone completely to the extent that I had a clone of her phone and could read all her whatsapp & amp;Facebook message, call logs text message and GPS to know where and what she is always up to. I’m really grateful for this great experience, it really helped me find out the truth about my marriage. They are also specialize on hacking and recovery of lost funds, kindly send a message if you’ve experience any of these issues..Email: jamesmckaywizard at gmail dot com or WhatsApp +31657.4.46.248. Kindly reach out to them and thank me later.