I am definitely one of them. Hearing other parents of children with disabilities say adages like this one has always made me squirm inside because it’s simply untrue to me. I would have Kimball another way—free from pain and suffering. But I’ve realized a trend—the parents saying this phrase were almost always parents to children with disabilities that do not cause pain or suffering in and of themselves. And are certainly not life-shortening.
In this solo episode, I divide out disabilities and medical issues into those two categories—ones that cause suffering and the ones that do not. And I suggest that we accept that we will probably always hate those in the first category (because what parent loves something that causes their child pain) and move towards acceptance and love for those disabilities in the latter group.
I also acknowledge than the sadness or pain we have over anyof these disabilities or medical issues always stems from the love we have for our children.
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Solo episode about Wendy and our huge struggle together.