Disability !
I have ventured out to shop at Tesco's twice since the accident. It amazes me how me, Lora and Angela can have so much fun doing something so mundane. We got to the doors and all my energy had left me. Looking hopeless and in pain an absolute gem of a security guard got me a wheelchair and offered to look after my crutches.
Being late at night the store was quite empty, so there was loads of room to push me about in the chair. While the girls were looking at the medicine aisle I realised that I could wheel the chair on my own without much pain at all.
Happy with my new mobility I started racing round the aisles giggling at my new found freedom.
It took them 5 minutes or so to find me, by following the sound of my laughter.
Next Visit
The next time I went with Lew and my father. This time I took the time to push myself nearly all of the time we were shopping. The amount of prejudice I experienced was vast. As it was an afternoon, the shop this time was much busier. People were impatient with me when I was trying to manouver through gaps. Several members of staff nearly knocked me out of the chair in their rush to get past and to top it all off the girl at the till could not look me in the eye.
This was quite a liberation. I realised that people have to go through this kind of treatment all of their lives. I have never looked down on a disabled person and in fact I dated a guy in a wheelchair when I was younger. Happy in the knowledge that the end of our relationship had nothing to do with the chair.
If everyone on this planet had to spend on day in a wheelchair maybe there would be many more accepting people. Being disabled, even if only temporarily, takes great physical strength and mental strength. I have admiration for disabled people as it takes much more to achieve simple everyday tasks. There are few able bodied people on this planet that have the strength required to cope with such physical restrictions. Therefore it is them that remain inadequate.
Before judging others put yourself in their position and think about how you would cope.
Angie x x
Being late at night the store was quite empty, so there was loads of room to push me about in the chair. While the girls were looking at the medicine aisle I realised that I could wheel the chair on my own without much pain at all.
Happy with my new mobility I started racing round the aisles giggling at my new found freedom.
It took them 5 minutes or so to find me, by following the sound of my laughter.
Next Visit
The next time I went with Lew and my father. This time I took the time to push myself nearly all of the time we were shopping. The amount of prejudice I experienced was vast. As it was an afternoon, the shop this time was much busier. People were impatient with me when I was trying to manouver through gaps. Several members of staff nearly knocked me out of the chair in their rush to get past and to top it all off the girl at the till could not look me in the eye.
This was quite a liberation. I realised that people have to go through this kind of treatment all of their lives. I have never looked down on a disabled person and in fact I dated a guy in a wheelchair when I was younger. Happy in the knowledge that the end of our relationship had nothing to do with the chair.
If everyone on this planet had to spend on day in a wheelchair maybe there would be many more accepting people. Being disabled, even if only temporarily, takes great physical strength and mental strength. I have admiration for disabled people as it takes much more to achieve simple everyday tasks. There are few able bodied people on this planet that have the strength required to cope with such physical restrictions. Therefore it is them that remain inadequate.
Before judging others put yourself in their position and think about how you would cope.
Angie x x