Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Free Spirited Carla


Carla is my grandson's mother. We first met on very bad terms. Since my son was determined to be with her, we developed our own relationship. I had to spend a lot of time on my knees to get to that point.

Since Carla is closer in age to me, we eventually developed our own relationship.
I first noticed the way she talks. she always says "I walked, or we walked,etc." This is unusual because Carla has been in a wheel chair for over 10 years. She was in a car accident when her daughter was still a toddler.

She was blessed to have survived the accident at all. While she doesn't remember the accident, she does remember the events leading up to the accident and her recovery after. Drugs and alcohol were involved and she is fortunate that no one died.

I remember the first time we went anywhere. I cannot remember if it was the supermarket,or some other store. I just remember looking for a place to park. I thought it was cool that we could use her plaque since this entitled us to park rather close. However, once we got there I was amazed and then angered at all the cars with no tags or plaques that entitled them to park there. That was my first real eye opener into my surroundings and the shortfalls that I now see almost everywhere.

The limitations that we place on those that we deem "handicapped" is horrible. Carla is only limited by her chair. She cannot eat in some restaurants, go to any historic sites be they homes or movie houses. She has to have a car big enough for her chair and her son.

While I may not agree with some of Carla's choices regarding her life, I do envy her spirit. She is very easy going and laid back. She is almost always happy and up beat. She reminds me of all the happy hippies I used to see when I was very young. We could all learn from a woman like Carla.

July 24 is a day set aside to think of those in your life with disabilities. As you go about your day, I ask that you look at your surroundings. Ask yourself if you were in a wheel chair could you go there? What about if you were blind or did not have all your limbs. How easy would it be for you to cook a meal sitting down knowing that your stove was too high?

We all talk about changing the government, environment, our cities and towns. What about just making it easier for others to enjoy what we seem to take for granted?

I have watched Carla overcome many things in the time that I have known her. But, the one thing she cannot overcome is the way we as a people treat those in her situation. To still have her free spirit and to love God through it all is a lesson we could all learn from.

2 Comments:

  1. Greg (Accessible Hunter) said...
    nice post, hope your day goes great
    ANTM T-Shirt Designs And More said...
    I love your last sentence. "To still have her free spirit and to love God through it all is a lesson we could all learn from" Really enjoying your blog!

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