http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber
again, not an LGBT-specific poem, but not irrelevant as I have met disabled LGBT folks from all walks of life and locations worldwide. I will try and post n gay-specific poem here one of these days, but please browse the archives for my earlier efforts. Struggling with prostate cancer since 2012 has meant I am not sexually active any more, and inspiration is not forthcoming, but I will try and find an LGBT-interest poem in my collections that has not appeared on the blogs...
Meanwhile...
Today's poem was written with a close friend's mother, Sheila, in mind; she was disabled in has meant I am a car accident some years ago. Her first Assistant Dog, Juneau, sadly long since deceased and replaced by others, was trained by Canine Partners, a UK charity transforming the lives of people with disabilities by partnering them with highly trained assistant dogs.
We all have our personal battles to fight, disabled people more than most. Assistant Dogs are skilled in helping their owners confront and overcome all manner of obstacles, emotional as well as physical. Sheila is no exception, an inspiration, even after a recent stroke, an epitome of the human spirit at its finest, as embraced by disabled people from all walks of life on a daily basis.
For more information about Canine Partners, visit their website; https://caninepartners.org.uk. For organizations outside the UK, see: https://assistancedogsinternational.org (Support by way of donations always welcome and much appreciated.)
I have always admired the indomitable spirit of disabled people everywhere, not least since joining them in a less but significant capacity following an accident in 2012. I was fortunate enough to recover sufficient mobility to get out and about with the aid of a walking stick. Even so, I used to walk miles and miss it terribly, especially as I cannot walk far these days, nor have been able to do so since. Even so, I try to emulate people like Sheila, truly an inspiration, and try my best to nurture the kind of a positive thinking mindset that sees disabled people climb mountains every day of their lives.
While I'm just an ordinary person,
although I have a disability;
Juneau's trained to be one in a million
assisting, supporting, inspiring me
Juneau helps me participate fully
in the business of everyday living;
people would rather get to know me
instead of looking away or staring
Juneau is my trusty canine partner,
together we tackle life's ups and downs;
we make a team like you'll find no other
on slopes where once only mountains
Far more than assistant or friend to me,
Juneau helps make my dreams reality
Copyright R. N. Taber, 2002, 2021
[This poem, dedicated to 'Disabled People Everywhere' first appears in my collection, On the Battlefields of Love, Assembly Books, 2010.]
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