I just had a wonderful week spending time with my grandkids in Missouri. I so enjoy them. My grandson is 6 and my granddaughter is 3.
When I’m with them, I can’t help but marvel at how unique they are from each other. Born of the same parents, living in the same environment, yet each is their own little person; each has their own personality, likes and dislikes.
People, in general, have their own uniqueness. Although we are all quite similar, we each have differences that make us unique. Even identical twins are unique in some way, be it in habit, thought process, or preferences.
Being unique as a person can be kind of fun. If you think about it, you’re the only person in the entire world who’s exactly like you. Someone may look like you or act like you, but no one will be you. You’re unique.
Even animals, and especially our pets, have a uniqueness about them. Littermates of puppies may look alike, but each will grow to display unique habits and characteristics. Each will capture your heart in their own unique and special way.
I guess you could say being unique can be good and bad. Being different from everyone else makes us our own individual. Being unique can also bring challenges. Because no one person is the same, for a doctor making medical determinations and diagnoses can be challenging as symptoms are displayed differently in different people. Take Myasthenia Gravis (MG) for example.
Each person with Myasthenia Gravis is unique. Although we often have common symptoms, each of us will display those symptoms uniquely. Many will have droopy eyelids; some will not. Some will have weakness in their arms and legs; others will not. Some will have trouble talking due to hoarseness or slurring their words; others will not experience this symptom at all. Even common symptoms will be unique in terms of severity, intensity, and duration as these will vary from person to person. Some symptoms will even come and go.
That’s one of the reasons MG is so difficult to diagnose. It’s called the “Snowflake Disease” because symptoms can be there one moment and gone the next. Or, symptoms can magically appear out of no where. You’re fine one moment, and display intense symptoms the next.
Perhaps the key is in recognizing the differences and assembling the data to learn what to watch for. That’s exactly what doctors and researchers are doing to try to help people with MG. By gathering data on any symptom experienced by a person with MG, they are learning what to watch for in a person who may be displaying similar symptoms. They are also learning to evaluate genetic markers that may help identify Myasthenia Gravis in patients. They’ve found a few of these markers, but they believe there are still plenty left to discover.
It may seem kind of strange, but researchers are looking for uniqueness to identify commonality. Those with genetic markers for MG are indeed unique, but as we discover more markers and learn more about them, we uncover the commonality among MG patients.
You’re unique. If you have Myasthenia Gravis, you’re even more unique. Being unique sets each individual apart in a profound, unrepeatable way—it’s not just varying from the norm, but possessing a singular combination of traits, experiences, and potentials that no one else can fully replicate, like the intricate patterns of a snowflake or the complexity of human DNA.
This unparalleled individuality serves as proof of God’s divine nature. God has imprinted His mark on every person and every soul, making us not as a common set of interchangeable parts but as individual masterpieces infused with purpose. In your own unique way, you are indeed a masterpiece. And just as a painter paints their signature into their work, God leaves His mark on each of us in a unique and amazing way.