Open Heart.

open heart

Hanging on the wall in my parents’ living room, there is a rustic looking sign that reads, “ The measure of love is to love without measure.

To say that I admire my parents would be an understatement, and as I approach my twenty first birthday, my admiration for them has only grown stronger. This is not an attempt to praise them, because I know that the last thing they would want is for me to write some sappy post about them. However, I do know that my siblings and I would not be who we are without them- a statement that I am sure many of you could relate to as well. Most of us think that our families are pretty great, but over the years, I have come to the realization that we have something that I think is really quite special.

Allow me to elaborate.

I cannot imagine what it would be like as a parent to find out that your child has a disability.

And, even more to the point, I can’t even begin to fathom the amount of courage and grit it must have taken to raise us the way that they did

They have taught me that in order to achieve anything in life, I have to be willing to put in the effort.

They taught me to always keep my stick on the ice- a saying that in my family basically means to keep moving forward, even when the going gets tough.

My family has taught me the importance of laughter.

They taught me unconditional love.

Our experiences as a family have shown me just how amazing and selfless my younger brother and sister are.

Even though my challenges have left us with little room for volition at times, we have learned that the ability to choose our attitudes is something that not a single one of us can be robbed of. We can choose whether we going to be positive or negative.

People always laugh at me, because I am so excitable. The smallest things make me giddy and vibrate in my chair. As a family, we have learned how to appreciate the small things.

Experience is our biggest teacher. I know that life can be challenging, but I have to believe that something good comes from each one of our challenges. I invite you to allow your experiences, whether they may be positive or trying to open up your heart.

You never know what you might discover.