How life experiences taught me empathy

Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). I don’t identify as having a disability yet; however, my life experience has taught me empathy. Let me explain…

I remember the day in first grade when my teacher explained a special class was being formed with limited students that was going to have a ton of fun and do cool things. I was sold. She asked who wanted to attend the cool kid class. All hands went up. The following day she announced the names of students that had been selected to join the special class. These were not popular kids, and I was to join them in remedial reading and math. For the next eight years, I had access to outstanding educators that cared deeply about their students.

Of all my life experiences, the elementary and secondary school years were the most difficult. I was raised on pig, goat, and mink farms. Kids at school offered daily reminders that I was stupid, smelled, and weak. Teachers mostly ignored bullying and other adults viewed it as helpful to toughen up weak kids. The bullying peaked in junior high when I lagged physically and intellectually. I desperately wanted to be a gifted athlete, but my gift was a loving family and two educators that made all the difference. Mrs. Combs was the school librarian. She had a talent for sharing book recommendations that kept me coming back for more. I am forever grateful for Mrs. Combs and the escape route she offered me through reading. Mr. Lee Squires was a junior high reading and math resource teacher. I can’t explain our connection, but he motivated me to level-up. I entered grade 7 with a grade 2 reading level and in two years, achieved a grade 12 level and confidence that I could compete academically with my peers. With consistent effort over a long period of time, came extraordinary results. Farm life and learning challenges allowed me to practice perseverance and grit that were exactly what I needed to thrive in a professional career at Microsoft.

As we recognize GAAD, consider the following:

• How can I make a difference in the lives of people with disabilities? Help provide fellow students and co-workers with an equitable experience by creating and sharing accessible content. Here is a primer to get started http://aka.ms/10habits.
• How does a disability become a strength? I highly recommend Crip Camp (winner of the 2020 Sundance Audience Award). Book recommendations I’ll pass along are Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law, Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century, and No Pity. For young readers, I recommend Wonder, Out of my Mind and Fish in a Tree. Yep... still love to read!