Talking about disabilities is somewhat easy for me because I am surrounded by family members and friends with disabilities but talking about my own disabilities? That has always been a problem for me. I have trouble opening up because I never want to feel like a burden to anyone or bother anyone with my problems. The reason I became an English Education major is because writing has always been such an outlet for me to relax and get things off of my chest. During high school, I went through some tough times and the people that were there for me were my English teachers. My senior year of high school, I took a Shakespearean literature class and I loved it and it helped confirm which path I wanted to choose in life. Another aspect I worry about in my life having to do with disability is my grandmother. My father’s mother is probably the nicest lady you will ever meet. She has never raised her voice and I heard her swear once in my life. Over the last few years, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and it is slowly progressing. I hate seeing her have to forget things and my biggest fear is for her to forgot us all together. It is to the point where she can’t run errands by herself because she may forget where she is going. Her and her husband have not left the house during the pandemic so my dad tries to visit whenever he can, but he works at a hospital and doesn’t want to put them at risk. I am sure every family has their problems and times to go through but I feel as if disabilities have made my life so different in so many ways and my life would be completely different if I were 100% healthy. Plus, I have glasses so that is kind of also a disability, but I love my glasses. You will never see me in contacts because I am just simply not me without glasses on. I know it says about 300 words in 30-60 minutes but this took me 10 minutes. What can I say, I like to write.
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Thank you for sharing! I think this post is a good example of how many ways disability can affect our lives. It pops up in a lot of places we might not be aware of.
Also, regarding time: writing also involves thinking! Sometimes when you can manage 300 words in ten minutes, it’s because you’ve already spent the time (perhaps long ago) in putting your thoughts on a subject in order. That, too, is writing, even if it doesn’t involve putting words down on a screen.
I completely relate to how you use writing as an outlet for you. I first started writing in middle school as a way to vent and process mental turmoil at the time. I never stopped writing since, and became a writing option English major because of it. It’s interesting how writing can serve as comfort when we are reluctant to open up to others around us. Likewise, what we write can serve as comfort to others, who might read our thoughts and feel less alone. Writing and stories have a powerful ability to make people feel less alone, which is interesting to consider through the lens of disability, which can often be alienating.
I too am surrounded by family members and friends with disabilities. I can relate to you with your grandmother with Alzheimer’s too. I agree that writing is a way to relax and get things off of your chest. That is also a reason why I am an English major because I love writing. Great post!
I also feel like writing is such a great outlet. For me, it’s always been difficult to articulate my emotions, especially when talking about myself. With writing, it’s a way to still get what I’m feeling off my chest, but not be judged by anyone for what I am saying. With writing, you also don’t have to make complete sense when you know you are the only one reading it. Writing has been such a huge outlet for me since I am very introverted and don’t express myself in words very well to other people, it always helps to see it on paper.
Hey! The first thing I noticed was that I also took a very short amount of time to write this as well since it was just flowing out of my mind. But I like how you seemed comfortable talking about your family and yourself. It was warming and I enjoyed reading your post. I also enjoy writing depending on what it is about. Good job!
I admire your ability to talk about your families disabilities and even your own. I like how you make your need for glasses a strength rather than a hinderance, like its who you are and without it you lose something that has become a pillar of how you view yourself. It was awesome that you were able to open up on this post and share a little bit about yourself, excellent post !