Oh, if we only could convince our daughter that she is beautiful on the outside as she is in the inside, she would be so much better off!

My name is Patricia Schuylkill.  I live in Trenton, New Jersey, with my husband, Al, and our daughter, Julie, who is twenty three --  and has Down syndrome.  At the age of twenty three, when most people her age are attending college or embarking on careers, Julie just graduated from high school last year and works five days a week at a sheltered workshop for people with disabilities.

Julie has the mind of a six-year-old child.

Many days, when not at work, Julie spends her time in her room, playing with her toys or watching television, her thumb parked in her mouth, and rocking back and forth.  She doesn't have very many friends except those she works with at the workshop.  She is very lonely and often gets depressed; this is when we worry the most about her.

Our daughter sees those beautiful Hollywood celebrities on television, and she feels that she will never "measure up"; she's convinced herself that she is "butt-ugly" when she is anything but.  To us, she is more than beautiful:  she is absolutely gorgeous!!

Julie is a beautiful person, both inside and out.  She loves everybody, even when people don't love her back, but she doesn't like it when people call her "stupid" or "retarded".  We don't like it either; it stabs our hearts whenever we hear people -- grownups as well as kids -- making fun of her.  Sometimes she will come home from work crying her eyes out; we know that someone's been picking on her, and it makes us feel bad because we can't do anything to stop the teasing from happening.

Julie is also a born-again Christian.  She accepted Jesus Christ into her heart when she was ten, and one of her favorite activities is to go to church every Sunday with some of her friends from work.  We've gone with her, but we haven't really committed to Christ.  We believe in God, but we just haven't made the salvation decision yet.  She loves Jesus with all of her heart, and she enjoys singing to Him in her offkey way, and loves "reading" her children's Bible every day, as well as praying to Him.

I don't understand why people have to be so mean to my daughter.  I mean, it isn't her fault she was born with an extra chromosome; it just happened.  As a result, we have a daughter who happens to be mentally disabled, and we, as her parents, must be able to care and provide for her, which we have for these past twenty-something years.  We love Julie with all of our hearts; we just wish the teasing/pain of rejection would stop, so people can see her as we do!  Julie is one of the most beautiful people we have ever known!

Well, I have to get Julie up, so she can have her breakfast and get ready for her workday.  I will write in here again soon; until later, this is her mother, Patricia, saying so long!  Have a good day!

~Patricia Anne Schuylkill, Julie's mom.  :)

*to be continued.*