While I don’t know what it feels like to be confined to a wheelchair for life at the present time, I definitely have compassion for those who are, especially this middle-aged man who asked for my and one of my sponsees help the other day.
We were standing outside in a parking garage at a local hospital talking for a few minutes after a recovery meeting had ended when this man rolled by in his wheelchair on his way to his handicap-accessible van. I half noticed out of the corner of my eye some frustration being vented from him while I continued my conversation with my sponsee when suddenly he shouted over to us and asked for our help.
Unfortunately, a motorcycle had parked illegally next to him and was blocking his access to the wheelchair ramp into his van. He asked if we could roll the bike backwards enough to free up that access, which we promptly did and I could tell how grateful he was afterwards. But at the same time, he was also explicitly angry at whomever owned the bike and I understood that. I in fact just went through something similar the other day with someone who was totally oblivious to my own limitations and treated me accordingly.
What’s interesting about all this is how I used to be one of those ignorant people myself when it came to those with disabilities and handicaps. I used to place my own needs, wants, and desires in front of showing compassion and respect for those who were less fortunate with their health. There were times I too probably blocked access to a handicap spot or even parked in one because it was close to where I needed to go without even thinking of who might be affected by those actions.
Until one becomes disabled or handicapped, it’s hard to understand the mindset of one who is. It’s hard to think about how life for them has plenty of more challenges, especially when all the parts of the body aren’t working correctly to help oneself in various situations like this gentleman who only wanted to get into his vehicle.
That’s why I’m actually grateful I’ve gone through as much humility and hardship in my life as I have in the past bunch of years, because I don’t think I’d be as compassionate and caring and respectful as I am towards people nowadays, notably those who are worse off than I in the disability department. I’m sure that’s also why I tend to always notice the people who are in wheelchairs, missing limbs, or hobbling along in life and I’m thankful I do because I know that God can use me at any point to help them now just like God did in a hospital parking garage the other day…
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson