My body is a word-maker because I spell or write on the boards with my mom. The most beautiful thing that happened recently is that I managed to show my mom that I wanted to say something. She usually keeps herself ready to help me communicate, but if my body can’t reach her to show that we need to talk, then she doesn’t know that I want to talk. Signaling to her that my body now wants to be helped to speak is a very important step for me, because then my body can help me to speak when I want to and not only when someone gives me a chance to speak .
Tag Archives: non speaking
We are going to visit an old school friend.
Ons het van mekaar geweet en mekaar se stryd verstaan, maar ons kon nie met mekaar praat daaroor nie. Ons het al twee swaar gekry, maar ons was al twee alleen in ons stryd.
Dit is wat nou die belangrikste deel van my storie is:
Ons het oorleef.
Ons kan nou kommunikeer.
Ons is al twee op pad na hoër hoogtes as wat ons vorige skool ooit sou kon droom.
Ons gaan weer heel word.
Ons gaan die kans hê om te praat oor wat ons ervaar het.
Ons het ‘n toekoms wat ons ander ou klasmaats nog nie het nie.
Ons is nou op ‘n goeie pad.
Plans are not always solutions.
I make plans all day long. It’s my way of trying to keep my body in check. Not all my plans work out like I planned it.
Communication gives me back the control over my life which my out-of-control body steals away from me.
Plans sometimes work.
Sometimes not.
It’s not the end of the world if a plan doesn’t work.
Another plan wouldn’t have worked today either.
The best part is that I didn’t allow my disappointment to turn into a meltdown. That’s the very best plan if things don’t go according to plan.
Now my body is showing me how we underestimated him
To help me with my body, my dad and my sister are better than my mom. The best is if they help me to get my body to also do chores on the farm with them. The greatest highlight for me was when they helped me, with my body, so that I could join them in moving the sheep to our winter farm. Out there in the open air, with my Sister, walking behind the sheep, my body was super calm. It was the best feeling I have ever experienced.
My body did what it had to do. It was a big thing for me. This experience will always help me to keep my spirits up when I struggle with my body.
Nou wys my lyf my hoe ons hom onderskat het.
Om my te help met my lyf is my pappa en my sussie better as my mamma. Hulle help my baie mooi. Die beste is as hulle vir my help om my lyf te kry om ook goed op die plaas te doen saam met hulle.
Die heel beste vir my is toe hulle my gehelp het sodat die lyf van my die skape help trek het na ons winters plaas. Dit was die grootste prestasie wat ek nog behaal het met my lyf. My lyf het ons almal verbaas, die heel meeste van almal myself. Sonder my Sussie se hulp sou ons dit beslis nie kon reg kry nie. Sy het my so baie gehelp om my self in staat stel om my lyf te kry om op die regte tyd en plek, teen die regte spoed, die skape aan te jaag. Om die skape nie bang te maak nie, moes ek rustig bly. Om my lyf nie uit beheer te laat raak nie, is nie altyd maklik nie. Maar, daar in die buitelug, saam met my Sussie, agter die skape, was my lyf super rustig. Dit was die beste gevoel wat ek nog ooit beleef het.
My mind, my best ally
My mind is not disabled.
My body is not disabled.
My connection between my mind and my body is disabled.
I have to remind myself – My body is not disabled – and do it again and again and again.
My mind is my best ally. I understand its power now better than ever before.
Now we are where we have always dreamed of being.
My voice is still silent.
My body is still frantic.
My heart still aches over the lost time we can’t get back.
But our future is now more beautiful than we could have ever dreamed of being.
It took a very long time to get to this point, but it was worth it.
We have learned from our mistakes.
We have not walked an easy road to get to where we are,
We can’t say we have all the answers now.
We still must ask each other daily to understand why we want to do things a certain way. We learn not to make inferences simply on what we see, but to ask each other why we see certain things. If we don’t give each other a chance to talk about how we feel, we misunderstand each other.
It’s an important thing we all had to learn. We’ve got the hang of it now.
Nou is ons waar ons nog altyd gedroom het om te wees.
My stem is nog steeds stil.
My lyf is nog steeds woes.
My hart is nog steeds seer oor die verlore tyd wat ons nie weer kan terug kry nie.
Maar ons toekoms is nou mooier as wat ons nog ooit kon droom om te wees.
Ons verstaan mekaar nou beter omdat ons met mekaar kan praat.
Ons verstaan mekaar nou beter omdat ons met mekaar kan praat.
Al is ons nou op ‘n beter plek om mekaar te verstaan, ons leer nog elke dag van mekaar. Ons leer om nie afleidings te maak bloot op wat ons sien nie, maar om mekaar te vra hoekom ons sekere goed sien. As ons mekaar nie kans gee om te praat oor hoe ons voel nie, verstaan ons mekaar verkeerd.
My wishes for 2023
We are much smarter now than we were at the beginning of 2022. We can now use the knowledge we have gained to help others, but also to plan my future. Time is really an issue. I therefore plan to take it a little slower with my schoolwork this year so we can find time to get to things other than schoolwork as well.
For 2023, it is my wish that my sister will realize how much we love her so that, wherever she goes, our love for her will make her strong.
My thoughts on 2022. Part 2
My victory with Elizabeth Vosseller (“EV”) at my old school. I am infinitely grateful to EV for coming to Worcester. I hope that her love for us non-speakers, will reach our friends who have not yet received their voices. She is a woman who really puts her heart into her work but uses her head to make plans to help us. She is humble about herself, but her work really changes lives. If I had a say in it, she would have already been rewarded a Nobel Prize a long time ago. II hope that her effort in coming to Worcester pays off so that we can give other non-speakers hope as well.
my silent voice/ my stil stem 