Part of Abby's life has always been limitations. No matter how much we see her as "normal" she has many, many limitations. She cannot run as fast as kids her age. She can't walk the balance beam. She isn't as big as the kids in her class. She can't watch TV without having to roll her head. Her fine motor skills don't work as well as others.
BUT. SHE. RARELY. COMPLAINS. Something happened recently and it gave me so much pause. I got to thinking about how if I couldn't do things as easily as others, if I had to struggle like she does just to be "normal" would I do it with a smile on my face. In all honesty I don't think I could. I don't think I could smile non-stop or enjoy life the way she does.
The only limitation that ever bothers her is her diet. 99.9% of the time she doesn't say a word. She watches people eat pizza and ice cream and doesn't say anything. She gets invited to people's houses and has to bring her own food. She goes to birthday parties and has to carry a bag with her vegan meal. All this and she rarely complains. Once in a while, when we go somewhere and they don't have anything for her she cries. She will tell us "I HATE my allergies". (Which, can I tell you, breaks my heart... it slays me.) But this is a rarity. Most of the time, with a smile on her face she asks people if the food the offer her is vegan.
Posted by Kristen Fescoe
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