Awareness Promotes Acceptance!

I was looking through my scrapbook just the other day and, it is difficult for me to comprehend just how much I have accomplished throughout my life. I was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy (CP) when I was fourteen months old. For me, having Cerebral Palsy means that I am dependent on a wheelchair for most of my mobility, but it sure hasn't stopped me from living life to the fullest. When I was first diagnosed, my parents were told only of the things that I would never be able to do. I am here to say that having a disability is not a bad thing, but I would be lying if I told you that it didn't suck sometimes. No one has ever said that life is supposed to be easy. I have learned that rather than being angry about our challenges, we should embrace them. The point is, I would'nt be Rebecca if I didn't have Cerebral Palsy. I still enjoy doing the same activities as all of the other teenagers my ages. I love shopping, hanging out with my friends and, reading. Oh, I LOVE sit skiing.

Yesterday, was my third time out this season and, although the snow was not great, we still had a great time. I am involved with a program called Canadian Alpine Disabled Skiers Association. It is an amazing program and, I am so privileged to be a part of it. There's something about gliding down the top of a mountain, I feel like a bird who has finally been let out of her cage ready to fly free once again. Even though the program is for people who have disabilities, I have always felt like an able bodied person when I am skiing. I guess that is because it is not the focus. The focus is making sure that those with disabilities are given the opportunity to experience something that everyone else has the opportunity to experience for themselves.

So often, when I go out in public my disability becomes the focus, because it is something that everyone can see. More often than not, people tend to pay attention to the disability rather than getting to know the person beneath the exterior. I believe that it is important to raise awarness about all disabilities not just Cerebral Palsy. Raisng awareness ultimately promotes acceptance. It took me a long time to accept who I am. I want to raise awarness so that disabilities are seen as a norm in our society. I want to live in a world where everyday is like the Saturdays I spend at the ski hill, a world where we all do our best to focus on what is on the inside, rather than what is on the outside.