Wheelchair Reflections of Sacred Wonder
Saints intercede to bring about miraculous cures for people with disabilities — they don’t have disabilities themselves. Right? Wrong. “It’s not like people with disabilities are usually known for feeding … Continue Reading Saints with Disabilities
“Not my will.” How many times have I desperately longed for my life of progressive disability to be different? For countless hours upon hours I have agonized, with teenaged hormones … Continue Reading Agony
I’ve never felt betrayal, but I have known loss and change. The world in which we live is terribly beautiful: here is where we experience blossoms and sunlight, as well … Continue Reading Ashes
You were once a zygote. The moment that you were conceived, spermatozoon fertilizing ovum, the genetic foundation that identifies you as you was established. You were living life while smaller … Continue Reading March for Life, March for You
Having been sick the week before Christmas, I missed my extended family’s annual Christmas gathering, Midnight Mass, and sleep. Thankfully, I had recently been with those members of my family … Continue Reading Merry Christmas
What I’ve wanted to do since I was a young girl, what others have expected of me since I graduated from high school, what my family and friends have encouraged … Continue Reading It’s Happening
Suffering is something that people complain about far and wide. As a Catholic, however, I have heard people speak about the gift of suffering. Those people look at me, a … Continue Reading The Gift of Suffering?
The most abundant flowers in my mother’s garden has always been impatiens. I used to call these pretty plants “impatients.” This was when I was a child who was quite … Continue Reading Impatients
Today, one of my friends is celebrating a birthday. This young man (young enough to be my son, and yes that makes me feel old) lives with cerebral palsy and … Continue Reading Celebrating the Gift of You
“There’s a crack in everything… that’s how the light gets in.” — Leonard Cohen, songwriter. I know about cracks. I suffer from a seriously disabling disease, Spinal Muscular Atrophy. My … Continue Reading Where the Light Enters You
Trees to climb up and hills to roll down. But, not for me. “It’s okay,” I tell my friends at school, “You can go down and play in the … Continue Reading Revolution: a poem
I hope you have a sense of humor. If you don’t, then you won’t fully appreciate the story that I’m sharing here, and, sadly, you won’t fully appreciate your own … Continue Reading A Three-Legged Dog
I have a morbid sense of time passing. This probably comes from doctors telling my parents, when I was two, that my disease meant I wouldn’t live to be a … Continue Reading Are We Having Fun yet?
My mother tells me that I was conceived on the Fourth of July. She says that she remembers well the hot summer night on their back porch in the city, … Continue Reading What Does It Mean to Be Independent?
With this reflection, I’m delving into controversy, as you can tell by the title. I feel nervous as I’m writing, so please bear with me. (And yes, it’s long.) I’d … Continue Reading Mother Knows Best? Eugenic Abortion
I should be dead, but I’m not. I should be a forty something-year-old in a nursing home, but I’m not. I should be miserable, but I’m not. Why? The reason … Continue Reading Real Men Stay
