This article first appeared in the Miami Herald in collaboration with the Lee Caplin School of Journalism and Media.
Walking into 43-year-old David Leal’s bedroom, you won’t find anything out of the ordinary for an ‘80s baby who came of age in the ‘90s.
Floor-to-ceiling shelves of Japanese anime and manga line the walls while posters of action heroes like Naruto and Goku fill whatever free space is left. A banner on his TV screen shows his latest accomplishment — beating the most recent version of the “Legend of Zelda” video game franchise.
David has muscular dystrophy, a genetic disease that has progressively weakened his muscles over time. Now a quadriplegic, he’s spent the last 35 years in a wheelchair and the last 27 speaking with the help of a tracheostomy tube.
David was 5 years old when he was diagnosed with the disease. His mother, Unince Hernandez, noticed he struggled walking up stairs and frequently fell over while in school so she took him to the doctor. By the age of 8, he could no longer walk. At 16, he was fully paralyzed and had to be intubated to keep breathing. Doctors believed he wouldn’t live past 21. “He’d keep [his pain] to himself t
“He’d keep [his pain] to himself to not let me suffer,” Unince said. “But one day, he said, ‘Mom, I’m sorry. Can you come here?’ before running out of breath and fainting. We had to perform mouth-to-mouth on him before he was intubated. He was in the hospital for over a month.”

Unince, 78, raised David and his two older brothers as a single mom in Hialeah and has been his primary caretaker for most of his life. She also looks after her 95-year-old mom, who has severe dementia. Her age and a recent shoulder injury have led her to outsource help from nurses to keep up with labor-intensive care for both. She bathes and transports them both from wheelchair to bed. A retired seamstress, she relies on government assistance and the small income she makes from alterations on a home sewing machine.
“I make him fresh meals every day,” Unince said. “I don’t care if it takes extra work. My life has been dedicated to him. It’s not his fault, this is just [the circumstance] I was given. I feel like [taking care of David] is a mission I have to complete. God is the one who helps me do it.”
This Christmas, the family hopes to purchase a new wheelchair-friendly van since their current one is from 2008 and breaks down often. They’d also like help with covering the cost of repairing their home’s air conditioning, which gave out last month and left them out roughly $3,000. David is vulnerable to overheating as his condition prevents his body from regulating its internal temperature.
Andres Maldonado, a nurse, is one of the most recent additions to David’s home health team. David has bonded with the Venezuelan over their shared love of video games and the nurse’s help when attending local anime conventions.
“If anyone took the opportunity to talk with him, [they’d see] he’s a very smart person and easygoing,” said Maldonado, 35. “He can strike up a conversation easily and is very knowledgeable. It surprises me how he enjoys the little things life has to offer.”

But what may come as the biggest surprise to those who don’t know David well is that he’s a published author.
“The Eternal Radiance of Romance” is a graphic novel series he started in 2010 that currently has two books in print. It chronicles a love triangle including a maid, a Japanese singer and Leal’s namesake, David. More than a book, it’s a creative outlet through which he can do what he physically can’t in his own body — walk, talk without difficulty and go on dates.
“I’m a dreamer. I have a lot of dreams,” said David, who was nominated for Wish Book by Lisbeth Mesa, his social worker at the Department of Children and Families. “I’ve always wanted to have a wife and family, move to Japan … create my own video game. The main focus [right now] is to work again on the book.”