On this day 32 years ago, my mom gave birth to me in a tiny hut in a refugee camp in Thailand. My parents couldn’t be more happy to bring me into this world. I was their first born. My arrival meant they were a real family. If you think you’ve seen an over protective father, you haven’t seen my dad. All their love, joy, hopes and dreams, there it was in a tiny innocent precious body. Little did they iknow, less than two years later they would beimmigrating to the United States, learning a new language, and finding out that their daughter was blind. I can’t even begin to imagine what they must have felt.
Grief…
Sorrow…
Guilt…
Fear…
They traveled up and down California searching for an answer. Doctors said my vision would improve, other doctors said it wouldn’t. Through it all, they protected me, sheltered me with unconditional love.
However, that protection and sheltering caused me to grow up never truly feeling adequate, and led me to continually second guess and doubt my abilities. My constant need to prove myself and compete with other woman in my life are from my parents unknowingly putting me in competition with my younger sister. She spent her childhood making sure her big sister was safe, going to blind camp with her big sister, driving her sister around, ultimately missing out on being the younger sister.
That was then.
This is now.
I wouldn’t be who I am today if it weren’t for everything I did and didn’t do. I don’t let my past or my circumstances control who I am, who I want to be, and what I want to do. I especially don’t let my blindness play any role in my decision making. I live to be a positive role model for my daughter and son, and everyone whom I may come into contact with.
As many of you know I am in a leadership program on emotional intelligence. Yes, it started with a lot of self discovery and break throughs. The main focus however is the 100 day stretch of living outward focused. We are the source of a world transformed by joy, love, and giving. This week we will prove that even the most outrageous and impossible tasks can be done. My team and I are raising $175,000 for Tuesday’s Children to benefit Eddie Rivera, a 9/11 first responder who’s health has failed him since he volunteered in the search and rescue efforts after those planes hit that tragic Tuesday morning. I am committed to personally raising $2,500 by Sunday. I am asking each one of you to please support me in reaching my goal by donating here. As a firefighter’s wife, this is especially close to my heart. Everyone in the entire world is still effected by the events of that day, some more than others. Today, on my birthday, I ask you to make a difference in the lives of those who were there at ground zero on September 11th, and those weeks after searching for survivors.
Blind Mom in the Burbs 