Columns

Autumn Monotony Turned Romanticization

“For the most part, my solutions to human problems have been simple ones—get more rest, do good work, take things a day at a time, and find some people to love.” –Mary Pipher, “Letters to a Young Therapist” It’s getting to be…

Why I Share My Story

Can I be totally real with you for a second? Putting yourself out there into the world is no easy task. Being honest, sharing your truth, and inviting cyberspace into your own little, unique world is an incredibly vulnerable feeling. What will people think? Are you sharing too…

Ella Fractures Her Ankle Bone

Kids with SMA have brittle bones, and Ella has had her share of breaking them. Just the other day she was sitting in her power wheelchair next to the coffee table. She was playing a game on her iPad. Her power wheelchair was “on,” and her…

Pity and Empathy: There Is a Difference

A few months ago at church, an usher came up to me and made a gesture that was — in his mind — “nice.” Seeing me, the young guy in the wheelchair, he placed his hand on my shoulder and said in a loud voice, “Let me know…

It’s Time for More Understanding

I think I can speak for the majority of the disability community when I say that we all crave a little more empathy and understanding from others. While I don’t expect a stranger on the street to fall in love with me at first sight, I do expect…

Lost? Find a Mentor

After I graduated high school, I had zero ideas of what I would do from there. The paths that young adults typically take were not workable for me. I couldn’t simply move into an apartment and get a job at Starbucks. I couldn’t go off to college,…

Ella Joins the Art Club

Henry’s been in soccer for quite some time now, and he’s getting really good at it. He loves to play, attends practices willingly, and looks forward to games each week. Ava takes violin during school and after school. She practices almost every day in the living…

The Existential Crisis of a Bridesmaid-to-be

It seems like everyone I know is getting married. People I went to high school with are updating their relationship status on Facebook to “engaged.” They change their last name and so the first few times they pop up on my news feed, it takes me…