Being Disabled in Society
Theresa McMillan
When I was young and growing up, I wanted to be normal. Now I have accepted that I'll never be normal, but know I'm unique! Having a disability has helped me to be a deeper person, sensitive and compassionate.
I take things at a slower pace. It's taught me to be patient and to learn things in my own time. I learn to adapt and find different ways to do things.
Socially it is hard for me. Sometimes I feel left out. I also feel at times people don't know how to talk or act around me. I also have gotten to know people who only seem interested in giving me things or doing things with me without genuinely getting to know me.
There are laws that say I can go to school and to public places and to work but the laws can't change a person's heart! Only when people get to be sensitive and compassionate is what I think has to happen for society to really accept disabled people.
Disabled is a wonderful word! It says that the person is gifted in another area than what society is conforming to. Disabled people should not be afraid of the word disabled. Society needs disabilities to stay grounded in what life is all about.
Historical disabled people I admire: Helen Keller and King George VI of England. I admire Helen because she knew she could teach the world how to see. I also admire King George VI, who had a stuttering problem, because he learned to take his time and that with patience and perseverance he could speak. I also admire their teachers because they stayed with them and became like family. They cared about them as people.
Introduction:
One word that I feel that describes me is perseverance. I was born with a rare congenital birth defect called Moebius Syndrome. It affects the 6th and 7th facial nerves which causes paralysis of the muscles. I am not able to smile or have any facial expressions. I also have vision and hearing difficulties and hand and feet deformities and a slight learning disability. I graduated high school in 1992. I tried to get a job but it was very difficult due to my many limitations. I have done a lot of volunteer work. I have volunteered at a special needs school in Sarasota called Oak Park School. I feel very connected to them as I have experienced similar challenges. I wrote a children’s picture book about me many years ago called I’m Smiling on the Inside. I wrote it to help children to understand what it is like having a disability and how to interact with a person with a disability. It shows children that on the inside I have feelings and like things just like them. It has helped many adults to understand about people with disabilitities. I also had to deal with my parents untimely deaths. My father died in 1993 of colon cancer. My mother died in January of 2009 with complications from a heart attack. It has been difficult for me but also has made me more sensitive and compassionate to others who have experienced similar situations. I do want to encourage people to find strength and courage in times of tragedy. In 2000, I decided to go to Manatee Community College which had its name changed to State College of Florida. I graduated there in December 2010. I was very proud of what I had accomplished. My career goals are to my have my own business in helping disabled children and other communitites to embrace themselves and to find their creative voices. I also want to become a prolific author and writer in writing creative stories and social issues.
I hope you enjoy this website. I want to share my writings with you and also my love of film and literature.
Cheers!
Theresa
Please visit me on Instagram
www.instagram.com/newyorktheredsa
Classic Literature I Admire:
There are many themes related to disability: being an outcast, having to adjust to a new environment, mental illness and physical disability. How does one cope with these issues and come to experience love in spite of them? Jane Eyre is a very touching and revealing look into these themes.
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