You may be familiar with me from reading about me in my autobiography ("Autobiography of a Special-Needs Child"--1 & 2), and you already know several things about me.
Things like:
1.) I am an adopted kid and have a very large family,
2.) I live in the city of Nashville, Tennessee,
3.) I am going to be in the fourth grade at Eastview Elementary and that I am in the Gifted/Talented program at school,
4.) my secret desire is to be a country/western star and be a member of the Grand Ole Opry,
5.) I am short for my age (at nine I look more like a 6-year-old),
6.) I have short black hair and black eyes and dark skin and that I have French Acadian, African Black, Cherokee Indian, Irish, and Spanish in my background,
7.) I am physically disabled and walk with forearm crutches and leg braces and sometimes use a wheelchair to get around,
8.) and that I am a Christian and go to Christ Community Assembly of God Church.
What you DON'T know about me is that despite how good I may look to a lot of people I don't feel well a lot of the time (and it's NOT just because my joints are hurting all of the time). I often feel tired, and I often feel sad. I am sad because I am hurting all of the time, and I don't like using crutches or a wheelchair; and I DEFINITELY don't like taking so many pills or having to take inhalers to help my breathing (the inhalers taste NASTY, and the medicine in them make me feel shaky a lot of the time). I often wish I could get around and play sports with my friends, sports like soccer or baseball; but due to my joints being the way they are I am NOT allowed to play ANY contact-type sport. I have to settle for things like golf, any board games, any card games, or bowling. As for my being tired, it is because some of the medicines I take make me feel tired, and it is also because sometimes I don't sleep well at night (due to my joints acting up or my breathing and asthma acting up again).
You also don't know I have breathing problems unless you see me take my inhalers or see me have an asthma attack. If my breathing gets REALLY BAD I turn blue in the face, and I am really struggling to get air into my lungs; and it all sounds (and looks) awful; and then someone usually has to call an ambulance, and then I have to go to the emergency room to get a shot or some oxygen; and that is NOT fun. I can think of BETTER ways to spend my time rather than being stuck with a needle or having doctors or nurses looking at me!!!! And I DON'T like the feeling that I am suffocating; I am so sure I am going to die!!!! (That is what having asthma feels like: trying to breathe through a straw. Or a gorilla sitting on my chest. It is NOT a fun feeling to have!!)
You also don't know what it is like having allergies. Besides the breathing troubles I have, I also have bouts of sneezing, itching eyes, itchy skin, and uncontrollable coughing fits. I also get bad headaches, and I feel like I have a cold a lot of the time. Summer is the worst time for me, and so is early spring, when the trees and flowers first come out. It's like having one gigantic cold all summer long, and then people wonder why I feel so bad a lot of the time. (I mainly have allergies to dust, pollen, and grass; and I also have allergies to beestings and foods like nuts, milk, and corn. [I don't have any trouble with animal fur, nothing like I used to, which is why I now have a cat of my own. My cat is a Maine Coon, and her name is "Cajun."])
You also don't know the pressure of being a gifted kid. I was always smarter than average, and I was reading by the time I was 4. I knew my colors at age 3, and I was writing by the time I was 4. When I was tested (as a baby; the signs of my "giftedness" started early) I was found to be intelligent. I was walking early (10 months), and I said my first words about that time, too. When I had my I.Q. tested it was found to be in the 150 range, meaning that I was above average in my intelligence. I learned things at an incredible rate of speed; I soaked up new information like a sponge; and I was able to remember what I had just learned. The classes were too easy for me when I started school, so I had to be placed in a class for gifted/talented kids. The classes there are harder, and more academically stimulating. Which is fine with me. I love a challenge, so the classes I am in are perfect for me. But the problems I have with my being intelligent are that people expect so much from me, and I hate being rushed; and I also hate being treated special. I'd much rather be treated normally. Just don't treat me like a baby, but treat me more like a kid my age, and just don't assume that because I am gifted I know everything (which I DON'T). Also don't treat me any different just because I have disabilities involving my mobility. Don't think that because I am on crutches I need help, because I usually don't. If I do I will tell you right off, and I will ask for help. If I can do it by myself just let me do it, and don't try to horn in and take over.
That is all I ask. Just treat me as normally as possible. Or as you would like to be treated: with dignity and RESPECT.
I have been having a lot of problems with people assuming things about me, and so I decided to write this down, so people can get an idea of my feelings and why I have been having the feelings I have been as of late. I hope I don't insult anyone, but I figured I had better write this down and get it off my chest. This way I don't get mad at you and tell you what I REALLY think!
Gary Grasshopper and friends travel to another field to celebrate the birthday of Gary's best friend, Freddie Firefly. While there they encounter a group of cicadas who have been underground for thirteen years.
