Special Education Advocacy

In my job as a Special Education Assistant, I think about the people who have advocated on my behalf over the years, and would like to think of myself as someone who will do the same. Therefore, I like to call myself, and hope that I will become, a Special Education Advocate instead. It is this hope that brings several questions to mind. Most importantly, ‘What does it mean to be an advocate anyway?’ The dictionary defines an advocate as “a person who speaks, writes, or even pleads in support or defense of another person, cause, etc.” A person who does this can also be referred to as an intercessor. In this entry, I want to talk about a few advocates who have been a blessing and encouragement to me, on my way to becoming an advocate for others.

The first advocates I had were the first advocates everybody has. They are unpaid yet exceptional advocates known as parents. In addition to all the repetitive and expected acts that she did and does for me, mom made countless phone calls with teachers, doctors and others who help, placing her beloved son in the right hands. Since my birth, Dad has written hundreds of letters, made many phone calls and has driven hundreds of miles for his son. He has also argued with doctors, teachers, and even university professors to get the best for me. This was advocacy.

Mrs. Gleave was my S.E.A. during elementary school. As I spent grade 2 wearing my first pear of glasses, later ran for the cross country team several years in a row (always finishing near the back of the pack), and finally graduating in grade 6 winning the music award, Mrs. Gleave was there. She was a constant encouragement to me, raising my spirits with her laugh, which sounded like a bicycle, and being just as much a friend to me as to my classmates.

When I had my stroke in grade 9, I often used Mrs. Jackson (an S.E.A. for several students in my middle school), as a support as I walked down the halls, hoping to regain my balance as soon as possible. In front of my peers and classmates, I would walk with my arm around her shoulders. This was not cool in middle school. Nevertheless, what she did was certainly advocacy.

Years later, Mrs. Gleave gave me the greatest assistance of any S.E.A. while I, a university graduate in Psychology, wondered what new road, I should take. I had thought that the only option was to apply for a master’s program of some sort, and continue writing dreaded essays and exams for at least three more years. However, Mrs. Gleave said, “David would be a great S.E.A.” That was all I needed to hear. I began the two-year program that fall and the rest is history. This was advocacy.

In spite of the work that all of these people did, my Greatest Advocate is none of the previous. If it were not for the work of my Greatest Advocate, the many hours my parents, doctors and S.E.A.'s labored on my behalf would have been for not. My greatest advocate is God because I believe that from the first day, he has been leading my every step. First John tells Christians “we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.” (1 John 2:1) And it is because of His acting, speaking and working on my behalf that I hope to do the same for others.

"See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. What do you think?"

Matthew 18:10-11

Hide & Seek . . . Seek & Find?

Today, as I took the bus home, a one year old boy began playing a game of hide and seek with me. He had a contagious smile on his face and a giggle that made my anxious heart glad. Playing hide and seek on a bus is difficult because once you are found; there is no way to run and hide again.
Jesus Christ is an excellent player of Hide and Seek. Yet, like playing it on a bus, if we read the Bible, Jesus makes it easy for himself to be found. Several times in the gospels, Jesus tells his disciples beforehand where he will be hiding.
John 14 is the hiding place for many of these verses.
“I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” (John 14:2-4).
Yet, in spite of His hints, the disciples don’t understand.
“Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?’ Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:5-6).
On Easter Sunday, Christians celebrate the end to the greatest game of hide and seek the world has ever seen. Luke 24 tells the story of two women named Mary who intend on finding and morning for their dead King, who was crucified two days previous. But instead the game continues. Verses 5-8, say:
”[The angels said to them] ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' Then they remembered his words.’” (Luke 24: 5-8)
Only at this time did they understand. For the two Marys, the game ended and their faith in Jesus Christ began.
People often say that Jesus does not exist because he does not make himself known. If you do not read about Him in the Bible, I can understand why you believe this. But if you read the Bible, Jesus can be one of the easiest people to find, because he wants to be discovered. Have you found him?

BUFUKHULA, UGANDA 2006

In May 2006, I had the privilege of traveling to Bufukhula, Uganda with seven members of my church community. This entry covers some of the highlights I experienced while out of my comfort zone, and away from all that seemed normal to me. The results were fantastic, expanding my mind, teaching me new things, and giving me a second ‘home’ thousands of miles away.

Mulembé (Hello)

Receiving African name - I was greatly looking foreword to this traditional event. A time when the community would gather and talk about each team member, and give them a name that felt appropriate. On the first Sunday in Bufukhula, I had shared my testimony of how God had twice rescued me from certain death. Therefore they gave me the name ‘WHOLYO’ which means ‘survivor’ or ‘back from the dead.’

Receiving African name - I was greatly looking foreword to this traditional event. A time when the community would gather and talk about each team member, and give him or her a name that felt appropriate. On the first Sunday in Bufukhula, I had shared my testimony of how God had twice rescued me from certain death. Therefore, they gave me the name ‘WHOLYO’ which means ‘survivor’ or ‘back from the dead.’

Gathering bricks with kids to build new school building - One of the few pre-determined goals we had in Bufukhula was to help build a second block of classrooms beside the first building (below), which last year’s CapChurch team built and in which we slept and ate our meals. When we arrived, the community had dug boundaries and had made a large pile of hand made bricks. We joined them in transferring the bricks from the pile to the work site, a distance of 30-40 yards. As we started moving bricks, I learned that the ground was not level and I began to trip over broken bricks, hills, and valleys I could not see. When the kids noticed this, they created an ‘assembly line’ handing me bricks so that I would not have to attempt climbing over discarded bricks. I owe a big Wanyala-nabi (thank you very much) to these kids.

Linn Block / CapChurch Block – Soon after arriving in Bufukhula, we had our first and only accident. As she made her way to her sleeping quarters in the school Linn (a team member) tripped over a large step, hitting her head on an open, steel door, which I had almost run into only seconds before. After being examined by Nurse Angela (another team member), she was driven to a hospital to be given stitches. The only problem was a power outage that occurred just before Lynne was to be admitted. So, the stitches were administered via a flashlight and candle. Upon her return, she received a round of applause from the community, who had already begun to revere the fact that she had ‘shed blood in Bufukhula.’ Therefore, they named the school block where she had fallen ‘Block Linn.’ Later on, because of the hard work of the team, the community named the second block, “Cap Church’ block!

Staff members hold my hand – The ways that people in Bufukhula view and act towards disabilities is quite remarkable. Whether I walked along unleveled ground in the village, along railroad tracks, or down a slight embankment, F.H.I. staff members like Moses, Andrew, or Livingstone would grasp my hand without any actions or requests on my part, because they saw that I simply needed assistance that they could offer. They would often remind me of the level places and they would walk on the unleveled ground so I would not fall. One day when Moses did this, he slipped into a small ditch. Even though he was dressed up, that did not bother him because I was all right.

Testify! - At church on the first Sunday in Bufukhula, I shared my testimony with an enthusiastic community. Clapping and cheering interrupted my ‘rhythm’ and of course, time had to be given for translation. Sporadic cheers from the congregation made this a truly wonderful and unique experience. On another day, after finishing a morning devotional, a woman stood up and danced, singing “Singolo, Singolo!” (Joy, Joy). Near the end of our time in Bufukhula, we had a community prayer meeting for the needs the community felt needed to be addressed.

Conversion – A few days after I shared at the church in Bufukhula, we paid a visit to one of my sister’s sponsor children. Christine (my sister) and Brent (her husband) sat beside their sponsor child as members of the family and F.H.I. staff talked about the impact Christine and Brent were making in the life of this family and the child. My mother (who came to Bufukhula last year) had told me about the impact that prayer and sharing your heart with the people can make on them. However, the fact that I had done this just a couple of days before could not have prepared me for what happened at this house. The father, viewed as the head and leader of the household became a Christian because of what I had shared just a few days before! Praying for him to accept Jesus Christ into his life was and always will be a memory of Bufukhula I will cherish.

Music in Bufukhula – Going to Africa is a musicians dream. It is different than other music cities like Nashville or New Orleans, but then again it is a different type of music. Though these cities may be known for their talent, Bufukulans may not be talented, but they sing, dance or beat their drums with fervour, excellence and no fear of singing the wrong note. The fact that most of these songs are Christian, make them a beautiful song of praise to the Lord. We were able to participate in these songs in different ways as we led dances, accompanied friends on the drum or simply sang as we walked along the road or railroad tracks. Keep Singing Bufukhula!

A different psychology – One evening after we had finished dinner, the team, together with Andrew (F.H.I. staff) played a game called: “I have never”. Each person held up five fingers and we started talking about things that we had never done. If you had done those things you would lower a finger. When it was Andrew’s turn, he said “I have never felt discouraged.” Of course we all put one finger down as anxiety is just a part of the North American psyche. I need to be more like Bufukhula.

Wanyala, (Thank You) & lindé (Good Bye)

One of the members’ of this team was so inspired by what she experienced, she has decided to spend 3 years in Uganda to work with these wonderful people. Kristee Watson leaves on Tuesday September 11^th, 2007. We love you Kristee!

A few thoughts on Asperger's disorder

I currently work at an elementary school in North as a Special Education Assistant (SEA). This gives me the privilege of working with kids who have a variety of disabilities. Last term, my first, I worked with a child who has Asperser’s disorder, a variation of Autism. Working with him challenged me daily providing times of stress, laughter, joy and anxiety. He moved back to Korea at Christmas time and I have wished on many occasions since that he had stayed so I would be able to continue to work with him, learning more about this remarkable disorder.

Since then, I have heard nothing about Asperser’s. That is until I started reading The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, by Mark Haddon © 2003, a remarkable story told from the perspective of a boy with Asperser’s. There are two portions of this book that have effected me most because of their frankness and truth about what it is like to have Asperser’s.

Chapter 71 “All the other children at my school are stupid. Except that I am not meant to call them ‘stupid’ even though this is what they are. I’m meant to say that they have ‘learning difficulties’ or that they have ‘special needs.’ But this is stupid because everyone has learning difficulties, because learning to speak French or understanding relativity is difficult, and also everyone has special needs. Like father, who has to carry a little packet of artificial sweetening tablets around with him to put in his coffee to stop him from getting fat. Or Mrs. Peters, who wears beige colored hearing aide. Or Shaven, who has glasses so think that they give you a head ache if you borrow them. And none of these people are ‘special needs,’ even if they have special needs.”

As a person with 'special needs,' I have often wondered what it would be like for me, and for my family, if I were born without special needs. I have lamented over my disabilities many times. Due to my visual impairment, I cannot drive and have had to rely on others to take me places. Because of a stroke I had in 1993, I have difficulty remembering many past events, people's names, or things I need to accomplish.

I have been discouraged over these things. However, through the eyes of a person with disabilities, Mark Haddon reminds me that a large or even small minority does not share disabilities. Whatever they are, everybody has at least one disability, and for the most part, most of them are getting along just fine.

Chapter 73 “I used to think mother and father might get divorced. That was because they had lots of arguments and sometimes, they hated each other. This was because of the stress of looking after someone who has ‘behavioral problems’ like I have. I used to have lots of behavioral problems. But I don’t have so many now because I’m all grown up, and I can make decisions for myself, and do things on my own like going out of the house and buying things at the shop at the en of the road. These are some of my behavioral problems.

a) not talking to people for a long time. Once I didn’t talk to anyone for five weeks.

b) not eating or drinking anything for a long time. When I was six, mother used to get me to drink strawberry flavored slimming meals out of the measuring jug. And we’d have competitions to see how fast I could drink a quarter of a letre.

c) not liking being touched.

d) screaming when I’m angry or confused.

e) not like being in really small places with other people.

f) smashing things when I’m angry or confused.

g) groaning.

h) not liking yellow things or brown things. And refusing to touch yellow things, or brown things.

i) refusing to use my toothbrush if anyone else has touched it.

j) not eating food if different sorts of food are touching each other.

k) not noticing if people are angry with me.

l) not smiling.

m) saying things that other people think are rude. People say that you always have to tell the truth, but they do not mean this. Because you’re not allowed to tell old people that they’re old. And you’re not allowed to tell people if they smell funny, or if a grown up has made a fart. And you’re not allowed to say, ‘I don’t like you’ unless that person has been horrible to you.

n) doing stupid things. Stupid things are like emptying a jar of peanut butter onto the table in the kitchen, and making it level with a knife so that it covers all the table, right to the edges. Or burning things on the gas stove to see what will happen to them. Like my shoes, or silver foil, or sugar.

o) hitting other people.

p) hating France.

q) driving mother’s car. I only did this once by borrowing the keys when she went into town on the bus. And I hadn’t driven a car before, and I was eight years old and five months, so I drove it into the wall. The car isn’t there anymore because mother’s dead.

r) getting cross when someone has moved the furniture. It is permitted to move the chairs and the table in the kitchen because that’s different. But it makes me feel dizzy and sick if somebody moves the chairs and the sofa around in the living room or the dining room. Mother used to do this when she did the hoovering. So, I made a special plan of where all the furnitures mean to be, and did measurements and put everything back in its proper place afterwards, now I felt better. But since mother died, father hasn’t done any hoovering. That’s OK. But Mrs. Sheers did the hoovering once, but I did groaning and she shouted at father and she never did it again."

Do you recognize any of these challenges in yourself? I have seen them in me. As an SEA, I have seen kids with these problems. Some of them have been labeled with Asperser’s, but many others may do these things because they need a way to release their anger or anxiety. You may not be a person who refuses to eat food of other sorts of food are touching, you probably notice if people are angry with you, and you probably drive a car of your own. However, you may choose other things on this list. Like refusing to use your toothbrush if anyone else has touched it, smashing things when you are angry or confused, or even groaning in a proper way and at a proper time.

This list is not exhaustive. You may want to add to this list. You may add: biting nails, singing aloud (but to yourself) in a public place, or cracking your knuckles. To make us feel better, we often refer to these as habits, and reserve the 'disability' label for others who have something a little bit more serious. However, maybe our habits are a little bit more serious, and maybe someone's disability is not so serious.

Meeting Eric

Last May, I spent two weeks in Uganda with a group from my church. During these weeks, we made almost 15 home visits to children we sponsor at CapChurch. My highlight was meeting my sponsored child. At each home we visited, we were greeted with singing, dancing and given wooden chairs or benches to sit on. When I sat down beside Eric, we linked arms and smiled at each other. His grandmother, who volunteers at an orphan’s shelter had walked the many miles to join us for this occasion, hugged me while singing in Lumasaba. Eric’s mother told me what a hard worker Eric is in the garden and at school. A member of our church community also sponsors his sister. Click on the Food For the Hungary link if you are interested in child sponsorship!

Crashing at the Manger

Isn't it amazing how, because of our work and efforts in preparing for Christmas, we ‘crash’ soon after the meal is finished, the presents have been opened and the relatives have left? I don't imagine the wise men doing the same thing. The joys of seeing a new born King probably made sleeping the last idea on their minds.
The gospel of Matthew follows them on their marathon mission, and though they had good reason to be tired, remarkably they show no hint of it. Matthew says they spent two years following the star, hunting Jesus down. I have never followed a star before, let alone for two years, but I can imagine that it may be like trying to find the hypothetical pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, next to impossible. So I would probably talk myself out of this on the first day.
However, the wise men had enough energy and motivation, not just to walk for one day, but for seven hundred and thirty days! Their reason? “When they saw the star, they were filled with joy!” (Matthew 2:10)
How would you react if you saw a star that moved? Would you refuse to follow it? “Not today. Maybe tomorrow. I had a bad night sleep and I have a crick in my neck.” The wise men most definitely had this option during their two year pilgrimage. Or would you be so excited that nothing could keep you from getting to that pot of gold?
What star are you following? Where do you think it will lead you? How long have you been following it? Are you willing to follow it to its end, or are you about to crash? I am sure these are questions the wise men asked themselves repeatedly. They certainly had enough time to discuss their reasons for doing such a crazy thing. But, what was their motivation? Who had told them to do this crazy thing? What would they receive in exchange for their gold, frankincense and myrrh?

Looking through the Eyes of Faith

What is faith? What does it meet to act by faith? In the book of 2^nd Corinthians, Paul said, “we live by faith, not by sight” (2^nd Corinthians 5:7), but what does this mean? What does the Bible say about it? These questions have been asked for generations by millions as they search for meaning in their lives.
In the many miracles that Jesus performed while He was on this earth, faith was of utmost importance to him. When explaining to His disciples why they were not able to heal somebody, Jesus replied, "You didn't have enough faith. I assure you, even if you had faith as small as a mustard seed (the smallest seed of any plant), you could say to this mountain, `Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible." (Matthew 17:20 – New Living Translation) This article is not going to explain how to acquire faith, because I am often praying for more. However, I know how to get it. By believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, “who gives generously to all without finding fault.” (James 1:5 – New International Version)
Mark 10 is one of the many examples where faith is shown and Jesus’ heart is moved enough that he healed the person who had asked for a miracle. This particular man is blind, doing the only thing blind men could do in Jesus day, beg. However, Bartimaeus did something that many blind men in Jesus day did not do, he showed faith that Jesus could heal him.
When we read the story, we learn that faith must be active, so Bartimaeus was active, shouting at the top of his voice to get Jesus attention. Even when people scolded him, swore at him, or demeaned him, he did not stop. As a result, Bartimaeus received what he had been waiting for, for years, the attention of someone who could do something about his immediate situation.
As someone with a disability, I can imagine how Bartimaeus might have felt when someone in the crowd said, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." Was he excited? Ecstatic? I do not think the English language has the words to express this man’s joy.
In Mark 10:51, Jesus asks him, “’What do you want me to do for you?’ The knowledge that Bartimaeus’ acts of faith had gotten Jesus attention and that his lowly situation mattered to Jesus was certainly enough to make him cheer up quickly. “Jesus wants to do something for me?” How would you feel if Jesus came into your situation and asked that question? What would you say? Would you have the faith that Jesus could do it?
Getting Jesus attention and answering His questions, were the first two steps towards healing for Bartimaeus. And this remains true for many others who have called on the name of Jesus Christ. Believing that Jesus can do what we ask is the third and often the most difficult stage.
So, what is faith? In one of his many songs, Michael Card, a contemporary Christian artist wrote:

To hear with my heart,

To see with my soul,

To be guided by a hand I cannot hold,

To trust in a way that I cannot see,

That's what faith must be.

The details of your answer may be different from mine. However, the primary meaning of faith is just as the song says. To believe in my heart that God can do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine. Do you believe this?