From their first meeting, Steve and Hope Dezember knew they were made for each other. Steve lit candles, cooked, and set romantic music in the background. On that day, in early 2011, Hope couldn’t help but fall madly in love with him. But during that evening something else caught her eye: when he tried to open a bottle of wine, his hands trembled and he momentarily lost control of them. It only lasted a few seconds.

Steve had had such episodes before and had gone to 7 different doctors to find out what was causing the symptoms, but had received no response. Only 4 months later, when he was 28, doctors discovered that he was suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Its causes are unknown, but the effects are devastating: it attacks the nerve cells in the spine, which causes the patient to progressively lose his ability to speak, move, to walk. Suddenly, the future was very bleak for Steve.

So the two decided to make the most of their time and travel together. But it didn’t last long, in January 2013, Steve couldn’t speak anymore. Eventually, the journey became impossible, and when they returned home, Steve had become very weak, but Hope looked at him and said, “When I look at him I find him as attractive as ever.”

Hope gave up her job to take care of her husband 24 hours a day. Together they made a project that helps them pay their bills. Steve paints, and people buy his paintings. Create unique paintings using paint and wheelchair wheels.

Steve’s life is not easy, but he struggles every day to stay alive and always hopes that a cure will be found for his illness. The two live their lives to the fullest, despite all the problems.

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