Guest blog post: Enough Enough by Kristen

The Disability Visibility Project loves tumblrs. We came across so many powerful and thoughtful tumblrs (and lots of funny cat ones too) such as Letters to Thrive, a tumblr of disabled women writing letters to their younger selves.

We recently came across a post by Kristen from i believe you | it’s not your fault. Please check out all the amazing posts from this tumblr. Below is an excerpt from Kristen originally published on August 6, 2014.

Enough Enough

Kristen

I thought if I could be “the smart girl” (or even “the nerdy girl”) then I wouldn’t have to be “the disabled girl.” Maybe people didn’t think of me like that, but I was certain that they did. I used to obsess over whether something happened/didn’t happen because I had a disability. Would this guy like me/think I was cute if I was “normal”? Would I have gotten cast in the musical if I didn’t have a disability? Would I have chosen a different career if I could stand on my feet all day? There is no way to answer to these questions, but I still wonder about them.

Being different is hard. It fucking sucks sometimes. I have been approached by complete strangers in all sorts of situations who want to know “what’s wrong” with my feet/legs/me. A grown woman yelled “HURRY UP!” at me when I was walking in the AIDS walk in high school. People have threatened to call the police when I park in a handicapped parking spot. Recently, a man working at the Las Vegas airport let me cut to the front of the taxi line, but not before yelling to everyone else in line that I was getting this privilege because I am “crippled.” In 2014, an adult male called me crippled. I’m sure some of you have heard much worse for your differences. if so, I am truly sorry.

I hope you’ll remember that being different (physical disability or otherwise) is not the same thing as being less than. You are already good enough, smart enough, and enough enough. Just as you are. Please don’t ever forget that. I’ll try not to, too.

For the entire post, go to: http://ibelieveyouitsnotyourfault.tumblr.com/post/93995632163/enough-enough

i believe you | it’s not your fault

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