Well, it has been awhile since I last wrote. I have missed writing on my blog, but I have been busy with some other writing projects.
I thought I might as well start off 2013 with a little controversy... it can be good for the soul. I find it interesting and well, somewhat annoying that as humans we love to put each other in boxes. And most of the time, if you are put in a box you are very unlikely to get out.
As a young woman I had a tendency to be rather emotional at times. I am now 50 and still seem to have that box around me with certain people. In the past, I have been a democrat and to the republicans, I always will be. In the past I have also been a republican and you guessed it, to the democrats, I always will be. As for myself, I have no idea what box I am in.
Over Christmas break, I have been thinking about a couple of things. Recently, I have found myself temporarily disabled. I hurt my knee and had a terrible time walking for a couple of weeks. It sure made me appreciate my knees a lot more. In certain situations, I can be incredibly hearing impaired and I appear to have the same type of hearing loss progression that my dad had (the future isn't hard to predict on that one). Those challenges are temporary, but so often we put people with disabilities in a box they cannot escape.
Over the last couple of weeks I have spent time with friends walking through the progression of difficult disabilities such as: Parkinson's, dementia, cancer, muscular dystrophy, learning disabilities, autism, heart disease, kidney disease, and diabetes. When I think of my dear friends, I would never want to put them in a box they can't escape. They are strong, talented, compassionate, driven and memorable people (that happen to have a disability.)
Here is my challenge: Think of a friend and how you would describe your friend to someone. What would be the first words out of your mouth? I have been surprised at how often I hear the color of a person's skin or the status of their weight described first. How would you want someone to describe you? Would you mention a wheelchair first or the person sitting in it? Just something to think about....
