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A spoon in my candy bowl

Mar 15 05:16

When you have a disability, you’ll find a lot of things aren’t as easy. Walking, not so easy. Running a mile, not so easy. And THIS one may seem hard to believe, but taking a handful of candy from a candy bowl, a motion that most people never think about, and a notably difficult one for a select few, from people like me to people with CP, MS, to stroke survivors and anyone else with hand problems - not so easy.

If you ask me, there are just some things in life that should never be hard. The pure unadulterated joy of consuming candy is certainly one of them. Its a God-given right and it should be easy for all - supremely easy, ridiculously easy, embarrassingly easy. That’s where my bright yellow-handled spoon comes in. This lazy man, low-cost solution may not impress Occupational Therapists, it may even get me teased (ok, it has), but it takes what used to be an overwhelmingly difficult action into the realm of some of the easiest things I can do. Thank you spoon! <3

Its not just that its easier to eat Gobstoppers, and that the spoon helps me shovel them in my mouth like a fevered elf shoveling snow. No, the spoon gives me more than just the freedom to shove my face with candy goodness, it gives me access to a pure-pleasure activity in a way that doesn’t cause even the slightest amount of stress. And I deserve it. You deserve it. Some things in life are hard, but sucking a jawbreaker shouldn’t be one of them.

We have enough stress-factors in life - chairs breaking down, taking 10 minutes to put on a jacket, taking twice as long as an average person to cook a salmon dinner because of our hands, and yes, that’s our lot. But just because we’re destined to live physically difficult lives, we should not accept all difficulties as unchangeable. Swallow your pride, who cares what the yahoos think, and put that spoon in your candy bowl. That’s what I say.

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1. Jaywheeler | Mar 17 04:22

your attitude makes this man with CP smile!

2. Tiffiny | Apr 06 05:54

@Jaywheeler - thanks! but what's your favorite candy?

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By Tiffiny Carlson

Tiffiny Carlson Disability buzz, travel, fashion and dating — fun things to amp up everyday wheeling life.

Tiffiny Carlson is freelance writer and writes the “SCI Life” column for New Mobility. She's also a C6 quad from a diving accident that occurred when she was 14 years old. A lifelong resident of Minneapolis, Tiffiny has been a writer in the disability community for over 10 years and writes for several publications and blogs, as well as her personal blog BeautyAbility. Her work has also appeared in mainstream publications such as Nerve.com and Playgirl.