To Tony
My sweet Tony, I know impulse control is something you have to fight to improve every day. For you to remember without mistakes the kind of things you couldn’t do around me when I was recovering was a feat that many might not recognize, but I do. I know you don’t speak often of love, nor do you need to. Your actions show me how deeply you feel it. I am so grateful that from the moment it was explained to you that I had severe spinal cord compression, you were so careful with my neck. Not once during my recovery process did you wrap your arm around my neck to pull me into a hug as you used to do when we were sitting next to each other before all of this started. I am so grateful for your gentleness and that you worked so hard to accept as calmly as you could all of the changes this health challenge of mine brought to your routine and what we could do together. I love you always, Mama.
Tony playing catch with another kiddo at his school last week
Some Viewing and Reading to Consider:
I myself would say that I am more than “disheartened,” I am fearful of what this lack of listening could mean for the future services that are critical to the survival and well-being of individuals like our son. I was reminded recently of verses from Matthew 25 by my husband:
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you? The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”
We should listen to each other, and we should in my opinion be willing to help those in our communities who are so vulnerable. We as a community need to listen to what disabled community members and their caregivers say is needed without politicization, and we need to speak up peacefully but with whatever volume is necessary to be heard. I am asking each of you consider reaching out to your state reps to encourage them to protect these critical services for the developmentally disabled.
“Is The US Headed Towards Another Civil War?” Ted talk by Barbara F. Walters
Ms. Walters was hired by the CIA in 2017 to help determine which countries were more likely to experience violent political upheavals and she discusses her findings in this video. I think this is very interesting information, and something that anyone who wishes to avoid repeating history should pay attention to. She also has a more involved book on the subject for those of you who are interested, I have recently begun reading it myself.
“What Are Tariffs And How Do They Work?” by Mind Math Money on YouTube
I found this to be a neutral and balanced discussion of tariffs, and I think it is important for anyone in this country to understand, as this is not a tax paid by foreign countries. We will be paying it every time we purchase something, and most of what people in my income bracket and below can afford comes from places like China because it’s still cheaper to manufacture it there and likely will remain that way based on what a living wage is in America. Add the length of time it would take to build factories to bring any manufacturing jobs back to this country, and any way you look at it, what we pay for pretty much everything will go up (even for US cars which are assembled in other countries and cross borders and now have a tariff, even for food, because we import so much and some things we consume can’t really be grown here), what we purchase will likely have to be much less.
With that in mind, as every penny and how it is spent will matter even more to many, may I recommend the following: goodsuniteus.com. This organization keeps track of the political parties each company donates to, so that you can vote with your shrinking pile of discretionary spending dollars if you like and make sure you are spending money with companies whose affiliations you are more comfortable with.
