OUTLINE FOR DISABILITY/HANDICAP
"If what you got don't work, work with what you've got!"
"Focus on what you do have and are able to do -- not on what you don't have or can't do!"
And most importantly: "Affect has a very real effect!"
Do the belly yoga laugh—stretch upward tall and straight, put on the saddest face and put on the best act of crying, bend very slowly(body and arms straight like a tree), crying, then half way down you will start to smile and laugh, and then let it all out!
This works on stressed kids and adults every time they need a lift (or laugh)
Laughter (cheerfulness) is THE best medicine
Proverbs 17:22 –do a study on this and you will find Christ was a normal feast loving, humorist like his Father, and like the humans they made in their image! The bible is full of poetry, eloquence and just plain humor.
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. (KJV)
A cheerful heart is a good medicine; But a broken spirit drieth up the bones. (ASV)
A rejoicing heart doth good to the body, And a smitten spirit drieth the bone. (YLT)
disAbility:
a. The condition of being disabled; incapacity.
b. The period of such a condition
c. A disadvantage or deficiency
d. Something that hinders or incapacitates
Attention to--board with visuals of common handicaps and not so common (unseen)
--talk about the visuals, pose questions, and invite questions
Col*lab`o*ra"tion
n. The act of working together; united labor.
Give everyone at table a disability—some seen, some unseen (ie: finger brace, eye patch, “broken heart sticker”, stress sticker, caregiver sticker, etc.)
How do you feel? (at the end, how did you respond to it? how did you deal with it?)
Flight represents breaking the bonds of “perceived” limits of humanity. Do not anticipate a person’s potential based on ability, and in doing so provide artists the freedom to fly, break free from societal expectations and stereotypes that often reduce them to their physical ability. Indeed, it is the exterior of the differentiated body that most draws attention in public discourses about disabilities. Physical variance becomes a focal point of attention marking people with disabilities as “different.” What is at stake here? When measured against the yardstick of able-bodied, people with disabilities often fall short of “normalcy.” Resists such tendencies. Respect artists as holistic individuals – biological, psychological, and social human beings with memories, hopes, fears, purposes, sacred values, and aesthetic impulses to express these experiences. Perhaps the undercurrent of “flying” is not surprising given that “fl ight” is something that has always captured the human imagination. As children, we watched birds soar and experienced an intense desire to enjoy such freedom. The history of aviation reminds us that humans, with the help of science and technology, created airplanes to realize such dreams. Airplanes, of course, are acted upon by various forces including gravity and wind resistance. The engine and propeller of planes, in turn, combine to create forces of thrust just as wings provide lift to overcome the forces of nature and enable planes (and humans) to fly. Like the engine and propeller, we need to counteract the forces of nature and society in order to allow individuals who are otherwise voiceless and invisible to express themselves. Flight is about exploration. Flight is about transcendence. Flight is about freedom. Freedom, in turn, requires risk and struggle to explore, express, and even transcend one’s self. “I can fly!”
List of disabilities in humans: (notice the changes as the list grows and the brain is really turned on to what human is in relation to the word “disability—please read slowly and carefully, really grasp what they are and the details that each one calls to your mind—the “sub-headings” that could be listed under each one) : developmental, learning, mental, mobility impairments, neurological, Ataxia, Brain Injury, Cerebral Palsy, Cerebral Palsy, Paraplegia/Familial Spastic Paraparesis, Muscular Dystrophy, Myesthenia Gravis, Parkinson's, Paralysis, Post-Polio Syndrome, Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome, Spinal Cord Injury, Spinal Muscular Atrophy II, Transverse Myelitis, and Trigeminal Neuralgia, Multiple Sclerosis, AIDS, Ankylosing Spondylitis, Alzheimer's [and other Elder Care issues], Anorexia/Bulemia, Arthritis, Asperger's Syndrome, Asthma, Autism, Cancer, Cerebral Palsy and Deafness, Chronic Illness, Chronic Pain, Crohn's Disease, Diabetes, Dialysis needs, Down's Syndrome, Dwarfism, Dyslexia, Fibromyalgia, Head Injury, Hepatitis C, Immune and Multiple Chemical Sensitivities, "Invisible" Disabilities, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Leukemia, Lupus, Lymphoma (Hodgkins and Non-Hodgkins), Mesothelioma, Neurofibromatosis, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Ostomy, Osteogenesis Imperfecta, Pompe's Disease, Porphyria, Sickle Cell Anemia, Sleep Disorders, Smith Magenis Synmdrome, Spina Bifida, Stroke, Stuttering, Tinnitus, Tuberous Sclerosis, and Turner's Syndrome, .....
Work place injuries, deaf and hearing impairments, blind and visual disabilities, addiction issues, caregivers and independent living, cancer, abuses, eating disorders, body and mind issues, status quo, childhood, teenage stage of life, adult stages of life, sports mishaps, recreation mishaps, home injuries, stress, parenthood, …..paper cuts…….
Ok, now I think you all get the idea!
Matthew 11: 28-30, Isaiah 55: 6 (7-13), Ephesians 6: 10-18, Romans 12, Rev. 21: 1-7
BRING IT ALL TOGETHER!
We all have circumstances, whether in or out of our control, that make us feel different from everyone else, but what is important is what we do with those situations. We can either go from bitterness to anger OR with the Lord’s grace we can go from victory to victory.
POWER OF PRAYER—interaction with Elohim our Father!
2 –way path—the path of the disabled has to meet in the middle with the non-disabled and vice versa (in any one given situation)
What has been my handicap? (ask yourself)
Laughing lessons again
See the importance of a pleasant, good-humored environment
Laughter can be an essential element in life
Use the fun that already exists in your life AND bring more joy into your life
Combine laughter with learning (and life)
The greatest thing in the world!
LOVE—see article/book by Henry Drummond