Mary and I arrived yesterday from five days with our friend and Mary’s sorority sister Boo McLougjhlin in Holland, Michigan. I had almost forgotten how accessible my life is and how it is almost impossible to see the needs through the eyes of an able body person. Boo mentioned that the house wasn’t accessible however, I have a strong upper body and she thought I could make it work. Mary suggested I be unreasonable and I was.
The entrance into the house was at least eight feet above the driveway…. which meant steps in and out with assistance from Mary both ways. I also needed a walker to be at the top and a wheelchair at the bottom and at the top depending on which direction I was heading. The patio was two large steps down from the main level which I required assistance in and out of the house into the bathroom and I couldn’t direct inside the kitchen because the doors were too narrow. All of my bathing was done outside on the back patio. And, the best part for me was to become present to how little water I need to bath and shave in. Maybe a gallon and one half.
