i don't know if i'm just being particularly sensitive or not, but i have felt like there has been a lot of "whispering" around me while i've been out shopping with wyatt this week. i have seen several people give me that pitiful, "so sorry for you" look. seen (and heard) the whispering amongst families and friends while looking in our direction. i know that wyatt is awfully cute, but i don't think that's what they are whispering about!
i posted a status on facebook about the whispering, and my good friend kym (http://www.stringbean17.com/) sent me this message:
"Depends on the whisper....I do lean down sometimes and explain to my kids LOTS of things. Why someone is being mean....what the preacher meant, what the person in a wheelchair is doing with a pen in his mouth...usually then it involves them interacting in some way. Being kind to the meanie, interesting dialog now that they understand what the preacher is saying....or a conversation with someone in a wheelchair.
I do not know if the whispering you encountered was mean-spirited, but it may not have been. If it was, a good smile or having Wyatt blow them a kiss is a good option! :) If it isn't, a good smile or having Wyatt blow them a kiss might just be what they need to come explain that they were telling their child about their best friends little brother when they were a child...and how much they loved him, but they were not sure if they could come up to you.
I think that people who do not have kids with special needs do not know that they can talk or approach others. I have always walked up to the wheel chair, engaged the worker at wal-mart, but
most people are afraid of being rejected! :)"
i know that it's hard to know what to say to someone who has a child with special needs, but i wish it wasn't that way. i wish that more parents could just treat our kids like we treat theirs....as precious gifts from God.....created by the same loving God! not like our kids have something that their kids might catch.... something extra sweet, loving, kind and innocent.......
Oh how I wish it weren't that way too, Penny. I have to admit, in my pre-Lily days, I might have given a mom with a kid with a disability an "I'm sorry" glance. If I only knew then, what I know now.
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I love you, Penny! And I love your heart. God is using you to share so much with all of us! Love you!!
ReplyDeleteThat's one of the (Many) reasons I'm so glad we have Eon. My second daughter, especially, will now walk right up to an adult or child with Ds and engage them in conversation. She's starting to have more confidence around anyone with a disability, too. No more whispering from us! :)
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