I thought it was interesting that the mother in the video did not enjoy the first few years of Lily-Grace's life because she spent so much time grieving. In my opinion, I feel most parents would react the same way because they have little to zero knowledge on how to take care of a child with an exceptionality. She eventually came around and loved Lily-Grace and everything she stood for. She mentioned that she would never want Lily-Grace to change and that she is a bright light in her world, regardless of her disability. To tie in with the interview, I think it is extraordinary that the test for teaching kids with a visual disability was to find your way around town to meet the professor. I tried to visualize myself in those shoes, and all I could think about is how lost I would be. Even with the six months of prior training, I still believe there is no way for me to find myself around town, which makes me admire people that have visual liabilities. They are able to take the world for what it is and still do the things they want to do, regardless of the lack of visual representation. It fascinated me and I imagine that it would for others as well.
I also thought about how life would look like if I suddenly lost my vision or if someone in my family lost their vision and personally I wouldn't know what to think other than frustrated and confused. I agree that even going through months of training that I would still not know how to find my way around. The determination Lily-Grace has to learn and grow with her disability is something that she had to do, she couldn't just give up, she made that choice to persevere and her mother took a while to finally get on the same level as Lily-Grace. I could only imagine the struggles both Lily-Grace faced as well as her mother in helping her navigate life in a completely different way.
I agree 100%. I also think most parents would feel this way because most parents have no experience with children with exceptionalities. It can be difficult to not feel that way. I do believe that as parents watch their children grow and see what they can accomplish, those feelings begin to change. As I watched the interview I thought about the training the educators had to go through. With six months of training, I don't think I could navigate myself around Birmingham Southern's campus nevertheless around a town. This definitely made me appreciate not only educators but more importantly individuals that are blind.
Brandon, I agree with your point about Lily-Grace's mom's grief. This is a theme that I have picked up on many times over the course of this class. It has prompted me to think about the support system for parents of children with disabilities. It is interesting to think about the fact that children with disabilities have many legal protections for free, fair and equal access to education, but there are no government programs that help educate and counsel parents. I also agree that many of the tasks described are very impressive and that I don't think I could achieve them myself.
I think you worded this very well. The word “extraordinary” is a great way to characterize those that have visual disabilities because honestly I cannot imagine how difficult it is To go through life without sight. And honestly I don’t think anyone can truly understand what those that do not have sight go through and it is amazing to me how they continue to train themselves and keep themselves motivated to be able to navigate life.