But look at these pictures. I took these pictures with one of my best friends, Sarah Todd, who's like a little sister to me and also happens to have my same condition: Transverse Myelitis. These pictures were captured during a photo-shoot in the city, and though I initially wanted for my chair to be absent from every picture, I'm glad that that didn't end up being the case, because.... Looking at these pictures, I don't see a dumb piece of junk that I'm chained to, a burden that doesn't like to fit in people's cars and draws the attention of every passerby. No, instead, it's utilized in a nice way. It's PART of the pictures, a part that actually made them better and even more adorable than I could ever have imagined.
Walking is overrated. Yes, people stare and are generally super annoying and ignorant. Yes, that chair can be horribly inconvenient at times. But it's a part of me. Though I'd LOVE to recover more, I now realize that walking (...and running...) isn't the end-all-be-all. So thank you, ST, for suggesting these amazing, adorable poses. And thank you to our photographer, for not being scared to make sure that we utilized that chair. Thank you for incorporating it as a fun, important prop that belongs in the picture, rather than just simply an obstacle to be ignored and avoided. I needed that reminder.
2 Comments
Lisa Hammer
6/21/2017 10:09:01 pm
This makes me so happy!
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Jen Starzec
6/22/2017 01:31:17 am
Thanks so much for making it happen!! <3
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AboutHi, I'm Jen Starzec, and I'm 19 years old. I write a lot about disability and chronic illness, especially related to my main disorder, Transverse Myelitis. I also have a lot of poetry and some short stories. Enjoy! Categories
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