Perspective

I must disclaim something right up front...I intend no offense to anyone, or to any class of handicap, in this blog entry.  So, please...don't send the PC-police after me, I am simply recounting an experience I had today and how I felt about it.  I hope that it is taken in the spirit in which it is offered, no more and no less.

I was driving to church tonight, for the typical Wednesday night Presbyterian activities with some atypical Presbyterian choir singers who are just about the most fun group of people you'll ever want to hang with.  Hard to believe, but true...but that's another blog entry :).  As I was stopped at a red light, I saw a woman walking on the sidewalk on the other side of the intersection.  She was blonde, wearing a nice pair of black shoes, black slacks, a black and white top with some sequin-action going on, a long silver necklace, carrying a bag that might have been something of an attache case.  And she was handicapped.  It appeared as though she had been afflicted with some sort of paralysis, the right side of her body not quite moving in sync with her left.  

My immediate thought was one of compassion for her.  Being an incredibly independent person, I can't even imagine living life with a handicap that would slow me down and my having no recourse to correct it.  Then my mind flitted to others I have seen throughout my life, also afflicted with a variety of physical handicaps, who don't carry themselves anywhere near as well as this woman did.  I can imagine it would be very easy to fall into a rut of feeling sorry for yourself, and I hate to say it, but this is what I tend to see more often than not...people who live everyday with similar physical burdens who seem to have just given up.  On themselves, and on life.

My next thought was how extraordinary this woman must be.  Living life with a physical burden such as hers, and yet she has the desire to carry herself as beautifully as she possibly can.  It was so evident to me that, despite her handicap, she was doing the absolute best she could with the situation God had given her, and that was awe inspiring.  As odd as it sounds, it was a pretty amazing thing to see, and I was humbled by it.  While I would like to think that I could, I don't know that I could handle myself anywhere near as well if I were to ever find myself in a similar situation.  

I know there are tons of inspiring stories of people with physical challenges doing remarkable things, many things even more remarkable than those of us who don't have such challenges.  Inspiration happens every day, all over the world; I'm just glad I was lucky enough to observe it first-hand.