Yesterday was Children’s Day and Belize celebrated it under the theme: Reimagining a Better Future for Every Child. While thinking and planning for the future of our kiddos is usually a very scary and stressful thing to do, for us special needs parents, I really thought this theme was timely and on point.
From the minute special needs parents get the diagnosis for their child, the immediate jerk reaction is to think that his or her future, the future we dreamed they would have anyway, changes. It goes from bright flashy lights and dreams of amazing success to dimmer, to murkier thoughts of wondering if he or she will be able to overcome the personal challenges and the societal obstacles.
Personal
As for my dreams of Teo? Initially, I was terrified for him and what the future meant. Then, I became determined to do all I possibly could to help him reach his potential. But as I tried to get him as much support as possible and I saw him continuously struggle, to be honest, the future, for him, scared me. Sorry. It still scares me – petrifies me, even.
There’s no high school in his future. I still search my imagination like rapidly flipping pages through research books, wondering what kind of job he’d be able to do. Many days, I just dream of winning the lottery. Then Teo and I could go live on the beach in Placencia or Hopkins and spend our days swimming and paddle boarding. I would know he’s happy and I would be happy with that.
Autism Belize Families
I know I’m not alone in my worries for the future. Many of our Autism Belize Parents suffer many sleepless nights worrying about this. Will my child get the support he or she needs so that he or she can be successful? Will schools be willing to work with us and welcome him or her? Will he or she get into any high school? University? Will our community include him or her? Will he or she ever be able to live on his or her own? Most parents worry about their kids and their futures. We have to worry if our kids will be able to access some basic human rights like access to education and community and transportation…
I won’t change you for the world, but I’ll change the world for you.
Yesterday, I reflected on the theme, “Reimagining a Better Future…” And, like a movie montage flashing through my brain, I thought of Belize’s support of our Light It Up Blue Campaign in April. I smiled while remembering some of our Parent Support Group discussions knowing we have truly become a support to each other in the past year and a half. I flashed through the numerous meetings we’ve had with government officials who were willing to listen to us and discuss how we can better work together for our special needs community. And frankly, I couldn’t help but feel some pride about how many trainings and sensitization workshops we’ve held.
To be frank, we haven’t just been dreaming and imagining a better future, we’ve been working diligently for a better future for our kiddos. And we are seeing the fruits of our labors. Many of us are more comfortable speaking in public about our lives. We’ve become more comfortable advocating for our child. We have been determined to learn more about how to help our kiddos. We are moving out of the shadows, knowing our community is getting more accepting.
National Disability Week
National Disability Week is November 28 – December 4, 2021. The theme this year is: Powered By Inclusion. Am I in your village? And during this week, there will be a bunch of activities to focus on becoming more inclusive. Best of all, we have even been very actively involved in the planning of the Disability Conference. The goal of this conference is to start to put together the framework of a National Policy for Persons with Disabilities.
So yes, I honestly believe we are working towards a Better Future for our special needs kiddos and for all children. It’s not an easy path and not something that will happen overnight. But if we all -whether we know someone with a disability or not, keep asking ourselves, “Am I in Your Village?” and make inclusion something we continuously do, then maybe, just maybe, the future won’t be such a murky or scary place to dream about….
