Some humans disable themselves, while some disabled are more than human. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have one leg and be happy: to get up at 4am every morning to hobble down 2 flights of stairs, take 3 different buses in a wheelchair to get to the corner of Michigan and Randolf and sell Streetwise by 6am, during rush, when people are using 2 good legs to speedily get to work and deftly avoid your wheelchair while holding a cup of coffee in one hand and a phone to their ear with the other.
It is never enough to be reminded that one has two legs.
2 comments:
The disability that fascinates me is blindness. I work with someone who is blind, and when I see Bill walking through a crowded hallway, trying to get through a set of doors or around pillars that loom up in front of him, my heart aches. And I'm reminded how fortunate I am to see -- not only the obstacles but also the beauty of every little and big thing that I experience every day.
Bill tells me he sees flashes of movement, lights and colors, but no discernable shapes -- it's not all darkness. But when I walk around the house at night with lights off, I sometimes close my eyes to make the darkness complete, and then I think about what it must be like to be blind.
Ukiba
I have several students who have visual impairments and impairments of other kinds. What strikes me more than the sadness is the way in which they adjust and, maybe, grow stronger than they might have been otherwise. I have a student who is blind who had me three years ago and can still recognize me by voice.
Also, what makes meeting these people important is the fact that we have to adjust ourselves. You have to constantly think of different ways to "show" people things. It can be frustrating, but it can also teach you to be more creative in what you already do, and take for granted.
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