'BUT YOU LIVE ON - THAT'S IT'.Byline: - Mike Chmielecki Lester Leibson was born with cerebral palsy cerebral palsy (sərē`brəl pôl`zē), disability caused by brain damage before or during birth or in the first years, resulting in a loss of voluntary muscular control and coordination. , a disorder of the nervous system characterized by a speech impediment speech impediment n → defecto del habla speech impediment n → défaut m d'élocution speech impediment speech n , minimal motor control and - in extreme cases - spastic paralysis spastic paralysis, form of paralysis in which the part of the nervous system that controls coordinated movement of the voluntary muscles is disabled. In spastic paralysis the nerves controlling muscle movement are hyperirritable and do not function in a coordinated . Reflecting on his life, Leibson, 67, sometimes wonders how he accomplished everything he did: from the big things like marrying and raising a family, all the way down to the small, simple things like writing a letter. The Hollywood resident says there are three inventions that helped him immeasurably im·meas·ur·a·ble adj. 1. Impossible to measure. See Synonyms at incalculable. 2. Vast; limitless. im·meas with small motor tasks: the ball-point pen ball-point pen n → bolígrafo ball-point pen n → penna a sfera , the automatic transmission and the electric razor. Things we take for granted are things he could not have functioned without. His family has also been an important part of his life. ``My parents taught me how to be very independent at a very early age,'' he says. ``And my two twin sisters really helped me when I was young. They would help me cut my food - little things that were hard for me to do.'' Leibson stresses the importance of coming to terms with your limitations, and that ``you have to learn to adapt to society, because society does not have the time to adapt to you'' when you are disabled. For example, Leibson wanted to be an attorney, because he felt he could ``help people who are down and out.'' His friends and family talked him out of it, and he instead became a social worker for the county's Department of Public Social Services social services Noun, pl welfare services provided by local authorities or a state agency for people with particular social needs social services npl → servicios mpl sociales . He stayed with the department for 36 years, finding the time to marry and have two children in the process. Leibson has been active for many years with the United Cerebral Palsy United Cerebral Palsy (UCP), sometimes known as United Cerebral Palsy Associations, is a network of affiliated groups in the United States which works to "advance the independence, productivity and full citizenship of people with disabilities" (from UCP's mission statement), Association, which started up when he was a teen-ager. He used to lecture at different events about cerebral palsy, stressing the importance of family in helping the handicapped child develop - something he says he'd like to do again. ``Eventually, I would like to lecture at colleges and medical schools about the trials and tribulations of growing up with a physical disability,'' he says. ``I still do lecture when people ask me to.'' In the end, Leibson says it's important to keep a sense of humor Noun 1. sense of humor - the trait of appreciating (and being able to express) the humorous; "she didn't appreciate my humor"; "you can't survive in the army without a sense of humor" sense of humour, humor, humour about your life. ``Think young, but also be mature about that. When you take a shower, you should imagine you're rubbing off all the problems of the day before, starting new. You might have the same problems, but you live on - that's it.'' CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Lester Leibson, who has cerebral palsy, says that his parents ``taught me how to be very independent at a very early age.'' Tina Burch/Staff Photographer |
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