by Emily Perl Kingsley
I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......
When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.
After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."
"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."
But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.
So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.
It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.
It's beautiful here.
And you are the brightest tulip in the bunch.
We love you.
Momma and Daddy
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4 comments:
Happy Birthday Lois!
You can tell that you are very loved.
I will admit that there were quite a few tears shed on Castlebridge Road the night we found out we were getting bumped to Holland, but I have to say, we've loved every minute of it (well, maybe not the spoiled milk coming through the tube on to my foot at 4 in the morning on Christmas Eve....) and now think we're pretty lucky that we get to see this part of the world. Thanks for letting us be a part of the ride.
So of course I am bawling because I love "Welcome to Holland"! I have had the pleasure of being to both Italy and Holland and I have to say I love them both just as much but in very different ways. Each has a unique set of ups and downs, but I would never change either "trip"!
Happy birthday to your gorgeous and perfect little girl!!!
What a beautiful explanation. Thank you for sharing this. Lois must be the most loved little girl in the world. I am proud of you Elizabeth and Jay.
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