Cerebral Palsy Alliance

Archive for October, 2008

When I was Young

It’s just dawned on me, I’m getting old. In fact there are two generations below me that are already out of nappies … and I’m more than old enough to be both married and a mother. As I type, I am having visions of an old oak tree, creaking as it falls over and dies.

I’ve just read another person’s blog post; she is about ten years younger than me and also has cerebral palsy. Her post was about her school experiences. Not only did it make me realise that I’m on my way over the hill, it made me think about how the experience of living with cerebral palsy differs according to your generation.

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Writer’s block

It’s the thing that I find just as, if not more, annoying than not being able to climb stairs or jump up and down on my bed like a five year old. It is writer’s block and it should have its own disability postcode.

Some days I can write about anything and give it wit, charm, even charisma, but this week my creativity has bailed on me. My words have found another place to live. It may not sound like a big deal, but trust me it is. I’ve been trying to think of something to write for three days now. I’ve written and deleted so many paragraphs that the ‘backspace’ key is sore and still nothing!

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Fully Accessible Detention

There is somewhat of a stereotype – one that I’ve discussed here before – that people with disabilities are angelic and can do no wrong. We can.

Here are some examples from my high school years:

In year 7, I spent the whole of a religious studies lesson talking. I never was much for a deity and, well, the only reason any of us went in the first place was that we had this young student teacher … he was training to be an Olympic athlete. We all developed an appreciation for theology that year. Anyway, I had been talking in class and so, at the end of the lesson, he made me stand in the corner for fifteen minutes. Hello? I’m in a chair. What kind of punishment is having to sit and stare at him for an extra fifteen minutes?

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The Universe is Music and Words

Music … even the word makes me smile. Music is very much a part of who I am. I can’t play an instrument nor read a note, but I am the most avid listener and audience member to have ever existed.

There has not been a day in the last 15 years that I have not listened to music. This coincides with the fact that until I moved out of home there had not been a day that I had not heard, ‘Turn the music down’. Undeterred, I took the phrase as positive affirmation that I had filled my house with awesome harmonies.

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