It's taken the better part of 20 years, but I finally feel like my life is under control. I don't for a moment pretend that I'm the one in control - but with God's help, I've got my diabetes controlled. This is good news indeed! The weight is (slowly) coming off and I like this path! This is all good! God is so good to me and helps me and really does meet every single need in my life! All of them - not just some of them.
There's something very humbling about being diabetic. You know it's always there and you can make a choice to pretend it isn't there - but you will pay dearly for making that decision. You have to behave - or you will be sorry. There's just no middle ground with this disease - you are either staying on the program or you are going to be ill and suffer dire consequences for ignoring your disease.
I imagine everyone has a similar initial reaction to a diagnosis of Type 2 Diabetes - I think I said something like, "That is SO not fair!!!!!!!!!" I was angry at the disease, as silly as that sounds! It took me a long time to respect the disease. For a long while I chose to resent it and rebel against it. I said, "You're not gonna tell me what I can and can not eat!" Well, yes - yes, it will.
Throughout my years in Junior High School, I kept a low profile - very low. My self-esteem was at a minus zero and I was anything but popular. I don't think anyone really knew I was there, to be honest. All of that changed when I went into Eighth Grade English Class. My teacher knew my history with dyslexia and she also recognized a quality in me that no one else did. She tapped into my imagination and drew from me some of the best writing I ever did in school. She took the time to get to know ME. Teachers like that are rare, but I thank God she crossed my path. I'll never forget her. She put me on a path that led to a lifelong ambition to write.
I remember spending lunch hours talking with her in the classroom. She and I both liked Elvis Presley. She asked me to write a poem about him. I wrote about how he was forced to stand perfectly still during a performance once and how humiliating and frustrating that must have been for him. He was also asked to sing "Hound Dog" to a big old Basset Hound on "The Ed Sullivan Show". She read the poem aloud in class and you could have heard a pin drop. I wasn't sure if that was a good reaction or a bad one. It scared me a little bit, but everyone seemed to really like it. My teacher seemed genuinely pleased with the poem - and that's all I cared about.
If you are a teacher and you have a student who struggles with dyslexia, do me a favor - take that child under your wing. We're shy because we feel so stupid in the crowd of kids who can understand a concept after reading it just one time. It takes us longer to learn - but we can and do learn. Get to know that dyslexic child and see what a difference you can make in his/her life.
I read my very first Novel in Eighth Grade - it was "The Scarlet Letter" and it's still my favorite. There are some moments in life that just turn the light bulb on in your mind. Thank you to my Eighth Grade English teacher! You rock!
Kermit has "Happy Feet" - and so do I!!!
http://youtu.be/6BL_PIiwoWs
Today is INTERNATIONAL LITERACY DAY!!!!!!!!!!! Read that book - and re-read the sentences as many times as you need to in order to retain the information. Never ever give up. Today you may read a short book, but tomorrow you might read your first novel! Go at your own pace and don't worry about how fast others can read. No blame - and no shame!
http://youtu.be/6BL_PIiwoWs
Today is INTERNATIONAL LITERACY DAY!!!!!!!!!!! Read that book - and re-read the sentences as many times as you need to in order to retain the information. Never ever give up. Today you may read a short book, but tomorrow you might read your first novel! Go at your own pace and don't worry about how fast others can read. No blame - and no shame!
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