The AWWW Moment

Today is America’s birthday. I live in the best country in the world. Whether you are liberal or conservative, Republican or Democrat, we all have opportunities in this country. However, just because we live in the greatest country in the world, it doesn’t mean that people don’t often surprise me. I do have all the opportunity in the world. My disability anywhere else would be 10 times more magnified then it is. I am grateful that I was born where I was, but sometimes I wonder about people. As most of you know I am 27 years old and I have a master degree in education, but that piece of paper doesn’t mean much to my social disability. Yesterday, I was out in Erie at a movie, and I got the following reaction from a lady in her mid to late 40’s. She saw me and my caregiver and her immediate response was awwww. To this moment I still don’t know what that meant, but it made me think.. Just because I have a physical disability doesn’t mean that I have a mental one, but apparently you cannot change everyone. As I celebrate this 4^th of July weekend, I am grateful for what America has become, but I still know that America has a long way to go when it comes to treating disabled citizens like everyone else, because apparently I am 27 and look like I have a mental disability. I didn’t know that going to a movie with a caregiver automatically made you have a mental disability. I am not saying that having a mental disability is a bad thing, because I know people with them who are great people. They just struggle in certain areas. What I am saying is that I hate being grouped in one large category with certain stereotypes, but there are certain things about the world and America that need to change. The question is: Will it change in my lifetime? I am hopeful that the answer is yes, but I am not expecting it to.

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 [jh1]