After doing the wheelchair experience, I have a lot more respect for people who are in wheelchairs everyday. I knew that it would be hard, but I had no idea that it would be that hard!
The first challenge for me was learning how to work the wheelchair itself. I decided that I would take some time to ride around the Hinckley to figure out how it worked. At first, I kept running into everything! You name it, I ran into it. Walls, benches, people, basically any object, inanimate or moving was hit. No one was safe. Eventually, I figured out how to wheel myself in a straight line. Then, I decided to conquer the door. The trick is to open the door and propel yourself through it fast enough so that you don't get stuck in between the door and the door frame. As you might guess, this is not humanly possible, so I did, in fact get stuck in between the door and the door frame. Eventually I figured it out and managed to get through the door. There were so many physical challenges!
In all honesty though, I think that the hardest thing for me wasn't all of the physical challenges. I really don't like feeling like I'm drawing a lot of attention to myself, and I hate the feeling of being stared at. That is how I felt while I was doing this activity. I felt as if everyone was noticing me, and pitying me, and I hated it! I knew that I looked different, and I knew that life was much harder during those few hours, but I was still a regular human being! This activity has made me think twice about how I view those with disabilities. Yes, accommodations and modifications need to be made to better help those with mental and physical challenges, and yes, help is great to have! Ultimately though, we are all children of God. We should never talk down to or look down on anyone.
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