by Valen Keefer | Jan 15, 2015 | PKD Will Not Beat Me
In order to enter my eye doctor’s office, I must walk past the entrance of the Davita dialysis facility. This triggers memories of my dialyzing days and fills every cell of my being with gratitude that I am no longer a dialysis patient. I clearly remember the beeping...
by Valen Keefer | Jan 8, 2015 | PKD Will Not Beat Me
“Consider the momentous event in architecture when the wall parted and the column became.” – Louis Kahn I discovered the above quote the evening of December 30, 2014. Ironically the same day I was released from physical therapy after being a patient for 22 months. It...
by Valen Keefer | Dec 18, 2014 | PKD Will Not Beat Me
I was lying stomach down on a massage table with my face surrounded by the circle headrest. It was the third appointment I had with Michelle, a therapeutic massage therapist. She and I connected at my first appointment. She was in awe by all that my body has endured...
by Valen Keefer | Dec 5, 2014 | Determination, PKD Will Not Beat Me
“If I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.” – Gandhi Our bodies and minds continue to evolve and change. At times we may try to fight the inevitable that we never stay the...
by Valen Keefer | Nov 20, 2014 | PKD Will Not Beat Me, Positivity
Last month, my dad and I sat on the rocks alongside the American River in CA. There was a man-made pool in the river created with river rocks. My mom was sitting on a large rock in the pool. Her elbows rested on the rock as she absorbed the beauty that surrounded her....
by Valen Keefer | Nov 13, 2014 | PKD Will Not Beat Me
When I was 23 years old, I lived in York, PA and was the Chapter and Walk Coordinator for the South Central PA Chapter of the PKD Foundation. I found myself researching senators online, as I had an interest in educating them on PKD and getting them involved in the...