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HelpRe: “Abel” and ability
in reply to a message by sprout
There are degrees of otherness among the Down community: I knew a girl who coped well enough in an ordinary school. But then there are the severely handicapped, and one never knows in advance. I think that if I were Downs, I'd consider Abel an encouraging name. But then, I wouldn't be me, would I, so what do I know?
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People tend to forget that there are degrees with Down syndrome just like with anything else. Most of the public face, so to speak, is on the extreme "upper end". In the nineties there was a very popular TV show called "Life Goes On" which was a sitcom about a family with two teenage kids, and the one kid had Down Syndrome and was played by an actual actor (Chris Burke) with Down Syndrome. He, and his character, were extremely "high functioning" and a lot of the time the only way you'd know for sure was the facial appearance and a speech impediment. But not everyone with the condition is mentally on that level, and some don't have good physical health either.
People tend to forget that there are degrees with Down syndrome just like with anything else. Most of the public face, so to speak, is on the extreme "upper end". In the nineties there was a very popular TV show called "Life Goes On" which was a sitcom about a family with two teenage kids, and the one kid had Down Syndrome and was played by an actual actor (Chris Burke) with Down Syndrome. He, and his character, were extremely "high functioning" and a lot of the time the only way you'd know for sure was the facial appearance and a speech impediment. But not everyone with the condition is mentally on that level, and some don't have good physical health either.
I went to a fortnightly morning tea gathering for a few months, years ago, DH was studying at a university in England and this was for overseas students' wives. One woman sometimes turned up with her little daughters, very close in age, and inseparable. They played together happily, but there was something I couldn't quite figure out. One day I was playing counting games with them, tickling the palms of their hands, and one girl had the typical Downs hand. So I spoke to their mother, and she said that the Downs daughter was the eldest (there was also a baby), and she and her husband had decided to have another child as soon as possible, so the little Downs girl would have someone to play with and learn with. I was impressed by their thinking, and by their sheer courage. And it was working very well indeed. Two beautiful blonde toddlers, indistinguishable. I often wonder where they are now and how life has turned out for all of them.