Even a darkening world can be brilliantly lit from withinBorn with a rare genetic mutation called Usher Syndrome type III Rebecca Alexander has been simultaneously losing both her sight and hearing since she was a childand was told that she wouldlikely be completely blind and deaf by age Then at a fall from a window left her athletic body completely shatteredNone of us know what we would do in the face of such devastation What Rebecca did was rise to every challenge she faced She was losing her vision and hearing and her body was broken but she refused to lose her drive her zest for life and maybe most importantly her sense of humor Now at with only a sliver of sight and significantly deteriorated hearing she is a psychotherapist with two masters degrees from Columbia University and an athlete who teaches spin classes and regularly competes in extreme endurance races She greets every day as if it were a gift with boundless energy innate curiosity and a strength of spirit that have led her to places we cant imagineIn Not Fade Away Rebecca tells her extraordinary story by turns harrowing funny and inspiring She meditates on what shes lostfrom the sound of a whisper to seeing a sky full of stars and what shes found in returnan exquisite sense of intimacy with those she is closest to a love of silence a profound gratitude for everything she still has and a joy in simple pleasures that most of us forget to noticeNot Fade Away is both a memoir of the senses and a unique look at the obstacles we all facephysical psychological and philosophicalexploring the extraordinary powers of memory love and perseverance It is a gripping story an offering of hope and motivation and an exquisite reminder to live each day to its fullest.
