https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections daily 0.75 2026-10-21 https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections/polio-awareness monthly 0.5 2026-10-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/847bebe8-952b-451d-9cf9-a5c51415cf25/Darlene+Streat+8-27-45+Last+pic+before+polio+DeValls+Bluff+crop+and+smaller.jpg Reflections - Honoring My Family’s Polio Story - Young Darlene Let’s go back to August 1945, to a small town called DeValls Bluff, Arkansas. Darlene was just 17 — a young mother living with her own mother and two-year-old daughter while her husband served overseas in World War II. One day, after painting and moving into a new house, she developed a terrible headache. Her mother snapped a photo that would become the last image of Darlene standing (photo on the left). She awoke the next morning unable to walk. Her doctor diagnosed her with polio. She spent one night in an iron lung, months in Arkansas hospitals, and the rest of her using a wheelchair. When her husband returned from the war, he couldn’t handle the reality of her disability. But Darlene didn’t crumble. She wrote a letter to the manager of a movie theater opening in town, explaining her limitations and asking for a job. She learned he hired her when two young men showed up at her door to measure her wheelchair. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/a9a99eb4-645e-4c93-88e7-d54a3f8cc573/1948+or+49+Bert+pre+polio+Billy+Dena+smaller.jpg Reflections - Honoring My Family’s Polio Story - Young Bert Now let’s shift to Madill, Oklahoma, in the summer of 1949. Bert — my mother’s brother — was a tall, joyful young man, fresh out of high school and ready for college. After a long day working for a local farmer, he too developed a severe headache. By the next day, he was in a hospital in Tulsa. Another body crippled by polio. Bert leaned on his faith. Romans 8:28 became his anchor: “To me, the verse did not say that polio was good, but that God would bring good things out of it.” Polio wasn’t good. But Bert believed good could come from it. Photo shows Bert with his sister Dena and younger brother Billy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/9bfaad92-712a-4b62-bd74-f85eccb8af00/1953-07-11+Bert+and+Darlene+wedding+pic+with+license.jpg Reflections - Honoring My Family’s Polio Story Darlene and Bert proudly display their wedding license. https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections/audiobookintrochapter monthly 0.5 2026-10-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/aaeac7c2-1fc2-49df-852e-64a80ec1d7c2/Defying+Disability+-+Audio+Icon+%281%29.png Reflections - Defying Disability: Listen Here First - Free Audiobook Chapter! As a thank‑you for following my work, please enjoy the full introduction chapter from the audiobook version of Defying  Disability: One Couple’s Journey of Fierce Love and Unwavering Faith. Consider it a small gift from me to you. https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections/abba-european-adventure-part2-khzbj monthly 0.5 2026-09-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/6b84a658-5102-4ac6-af78-d0607154be76/20230827_211838.jpg Reflections - My ABBA-Tour Adventure - Part 2 - Video monitor on flight: Tracking our overnight journey from Baltimore to London. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/5b1cd539-c222-4d8c-9a10-3339e17215d1/ABBA+voyage+sign.jpg Reflections - My ABBA-Tour Adventure - Part 2 - ABBA Voyage Poster Signs advertising the ABBA Voyage Show were everywhere in London! This one greeted us in the Underground. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/54995e31-2ece-4be8-aba3-02ea850138ba/2023-09-07+Dinah+and+Donna+Museum+Bench.jpg Reflections - My ABBA-Tour Adventure - Part 2 - At ABBA: The Museum in Stockholm Dinah and Donna pose on the bench made famous by the ABBA Greatest Hits album cover, shown in the background. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6a3bcb9db953d027facc60ee/f3f5b74a-ecec-4845-8e19-43e803f8567d/20230912_142453.jpg Reflections - My ABBA-Tour Adventure - Part 2 - Dan, Donna, and Donna in Paris Rain and my broken toe couldn’t dampen our spirits beneath the Eiffel Tower. https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections/abba-european-adventure-part-1 monthly 0.5 2026-08-26 https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections/in-the-shade-of-the-crepe-myrtle monthly 0.5 2026-08-19 https://www.storiesbydinah.com/reflections/how-i-wrote-defying-disability monthly 0.5 2026-08-05 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