Monday, October 24, 2011
Who's living in a BOX?
I had to do some field hours for a SPED class I am taking so I decided to go to a dance Friday night at the Skinner Center. The Skinner Center is a community center for adults living with disabilities and they host a dance every Friday night. I expected to be in a room with maybe 20 or 30 people sitting around tables with some music playing. I walked into a gymnasium of 250+ people with huge speakers blasting club music and no tables. I watched as people 18 up to about their early 80's danced with complete abandonment and not a care in the world. No matter the level of disability they were on the dance floor moving to the beat of the music while I sat on the bleachers with some of the caretakers. My view of people with disabilities had been kind of like a box, there limitations would only allow them to go so far in different aspects of life. While I sat there watching and wanting to dance but was too self-conscious I felt my own "box" becoming smaller. What limitations did I put on myself voluntarily? What was the difference that allowed the people I was observing to be so free and keep me in my seat? They appeared to be living their lives to the max kind of like go hard or go home. What could I accomplish if I lived my own life to the max? I contemplated who was really the one with a disability.........
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Talk about an effective conclusion and overall kick ass blog. We volunteered at the Skinner Center when I was in high school, and the individuals had so much to teach about embracing life in all its glory without concern for the dos and don'ts imposed by the world. Kids have that same sense of abandonment before their souls are often smothered by our school systems. I make many excuses for myself and am often concerned about what the world thinks, but your post is a reminder that I should not be.
ReplyDeleteJessica
P.S. We missed you today.
That's a pretty thought-provoking post. I'm usually so withdrawn when it comes to doing stuff in front of people, that I often wonder what it's like to just do whatever it is that you want to do.
ReplyDeleteI actually was able to picture myself in the same position as you, watching everyone dance, wanting to do the same, but psyching myself out before I even almost thought about actually doing it lol. Like Ms. Swan mentioned, the self-inhibition starts young.