As your child grows, do you want them to fit in
and be accepted as best as possible? Your biggest obstacle is the ignorance of others. So if you know you are going up against people who don’t know your child, how bright they are and what they can or can’t do, the question is … How do you prepare for it?
Start with the end in mind …
It’s funny how the sole purpose of a memory is to serve as a reminder to trust your instincts in the future … When Daniel was about 3 we were advised that his hips would develop incorrectly if we didn’t put him in a plaster cast from his hips to his ankles for 6 weeks.
Imagine putting both of your child’s legs into a position similar to that of a wishbone of a chicken, and then cementing them into a plaster cast for 6 weeks. It sounds almost barbaric, and even still we went ahead with it.
Daniel was around 8 months when the doctors asked if we were going to have a second child. For Penny and I this question posed a greater risk than just having a second child with a disability, it meant risking Penny’s life a third time.
Our first attempt at a family (five years prior) resulted in Penny contracting a rare condition called Trophoblastic Disease. This is a form of cancer that affects 1 in every 10,000 first time pregnancies and has a nasty side effect in that it makes the women’s body behave as if it is pregnant and, instead of growing a baby, it grows a tumour.
At four years old Daniel, his brother William and I were playing on the floor when William took his first steps. Penny and I were overjoyed with excitement, as you are when your kids take their first steps.
What we weren’t prepared for was Daniel’s reaction. Later that evening, as I was watching TV with Daniel nestled closely at my side, he turned to me and said, Why can’t I walk like William?
Rodney Clarke Welcome to the Hey Dad blog … my name is Rodney Clarke and I suppose I qualify for the Hey Dad blog page for one major reason … I'm a dad! More about me…
