Power of Inclusion

My mom went to a seminar yesterday and she heard a touching story. . . . .

An individual was born with severe multiple disabilities - blind, deaf, wheelchair bound and totally non-responsive. His parents believed in inclusion and integrated him fully in their own community. He attended regular classes in his community school. Being right in the community, not just in physical presence, but being included as a part of his community, he developed relationships with people around him. When he died at the age of 22, over 600 people attended his funeral. Families and friends celebrated his life by sharing pictures and stories of how he had touched the lives of others. He had accomplished a lot in spite of having absolutely no facial expression and no ability to interact with others. One person commented that he could not speak but he had a loud voice. He was valued by his community because his parents' belief in inclusion provided him with the opportunity to develop meaningful long-termed relationships outside of his immediate family.

My mom was not aware of inclusion as an option for me when I went through the school system. I attended segregated classrooms in schools away from home. Relationships I developed at the different schools ended when I moved from one special needs program to another in various parts of the city.

My mom loves me dearly and she was my sole primary caregiver for many years until she could no longer managed physically as a result of repeated whiplash injuries. My mom takes me everywhere and I have been in touch with a large number of people. Due to my lack of social and interaction skills, I have only developed a few friendships, mostly with my mom's generation. Recently, my mom recognizes the importance of building a circle of support for me.

My mom begins to actively involve me in developing relationships. When others greet us, instead of responding for me, she encourages me to do so. She helps me with initiating contacts and sharing information about me so that others can get to know me more. This helps to break the ice and as families and friends start to approach me directly, I have the opportunity to learn how to interact socially. This is a very useful skill for me to acquire. It is going to be a slow process and will take me years of practice to master the skill.