IN MY SHOES: I Am Not “Confined” To A Wheelchair
In a Washington Post op-ed, Gary Presley, author of "Seven Wheelchairs: A Life Beyond Polio" (University of Iowa Press) reports that in his 50th year “riding a wheelchair through life” – these days, a power wheelchair he calls Little Red – “everything is all right down here”:
She is a sturdy tool, very different from the fragile roll-about I came home with from the rehabilitation center five decades ago, having been left nearly quadriplegic by polio. Little Red is 10 years old, chipped and nicked and bent, but so powerful, so reliable, that the phrase "confined to a wheelchair" is not only demeaning but inaccurate.
The wheelchair is freedom.
Over the years, we have become one, Little Red and I: cyborg. After all this time, she seems to move in response to my simplest wish - cradling me sweetly, all power and promise, rolling me toward another adventure.
Yes, everything is all right down here, "boob-high to the world," as my wife calls the place I occupy. …
Don't pity me, and don't worry about me.
Of course, like most people with mobility impairments, I will always appreciate more curb cuts and ramps, more accessible bathrooms and automatic doors, uncluttered store aisles, tables with knee clearance in restaurants, and especially more houses, condominiums and apartments built for accessibility. Hey, I even appreciate simple little courtesies like not jumping up and blocking my view when the Eagles are in concert. I may be sitting down, but I intend to dance through life until hell freezes over.
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