Bringing It All Back Home

A few years ago my father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. At the time of this diagnosis I had not thought about person’s with different abilities for any stretch of time or with any depth. That of course changed. However, the way I thought about such persons, including my father, remained exactly as it had throughout my life. I felt sorry for him and more then anything else, I wanted my father to be able to return to “normal.” Of course with Parkinson’s, that will never happen. In fact, as you may or may not be aware, his condition will only get worse. And that made me afraid. However, less then one year ago something else changed in my life. Nearly by accident and through the slimmest twist of fate I became an ALFA Fellow. This program, as I have previously mentioned, aims to develop a new generation of highly skilled information professionals to work with clientele of diverse backgrounds, abilities, and age specifically through the provision of universal access. At the time I received this fellowship, I neither had any idea of what universal access was nor did I even think about how it might apply to my own life.

Now, eight months later, the bulk of my fellowship journey is coming to an end. This ending has led me to think a lot about my father and it is truly amazing how much my thinking has changed in such a short amount of time. Looking back on my very first blog entry, I stated “there is a lot I hope to gain... First, awareness and empathy… Second, I want tools. As I come to understand the challenges, attitudes, legal issues, and support structures, I want to gain the tools to make a difference.” And this is exactly what I have gained.

Now, I have come to grips with the fact that my father will always be differently abled and, I have come to realize that I don’t want it any other way.  Instead, I can now embrace the different person that my father has become, I can empathize with the issues of access he struggles with and most importantly, I can provide him support if and when he may need it. That, more then anything else, is what I have gotten out of Project ALFA. That is the awareness, ability to empathize, and the knowledge that I can make a difference in a myriad of persons lives including my father's and my own. And although the road hasn’t always been smooth, neither is life’s journey and it is exactly this bumpiness, that is life’s barriers, blocks, and twists of fate, that I am now far more prepared to handle.