Making friends

I have friends but it's hard to make friends easily. I'm not like a normal person who can go up to someone and start a conversation.  If I went up to start a conversation with someone, he or she would look at me weird. When I meet people for the first time, they don't understand me. They've already made a judgement about what I can and can't do before they say hello back to me. It's rare to find someone with whom I can share a deeper connection.

Over my life, I have determined that there are a lot of different types of friends.  Some people think that girls and boys can’t be friends because romance seems to get in the way.  I had relationships with guys without romantic feelings, just common interests and respect for each other.  As school kids, growing up, we can make many friends and some are merely acquaintances.  Special relationships can last for years.  These people are our “best” friends. 

People with life challenges or disabilities, as they are more commonly known, can have friendships with people that don’t have disabilities.  I am of the belief that most people have some type of disability—maybe not a noticeable one, but to some extent everyone has a degree of a disability in their life… life is challenging in a variety of ways.

I moved into a group home in Calgary 14 years ago and I have made several friends since then.  Some were roommates, some were participants in recreation programs and some were my caregivers.  When I was in school I had school chums, but not kids that I would hang out with outside of school.  Some of that was because of my disability and the fact that I had mobility issues. 

The reality is I choose to always be surrounded by people who assume the best and I would not want to befriend someone who is a negatively focused person.  Consequently, I have some amazing friends who are in my life because they want to be.  The people who are currently in my life don’t tell me what to do or say because I can make those decisions for myself.  I am my own person and I live my life the way I choose.  I have room in my life for people who want to support me as I support them… friends of all ages from young to old.  In fact, many of my friends are not my own age.  They bring a variety of experiences to my life and a broad perspective to living. There is no better feeling than learning from someone who has already been down a particular road and has the wisdom to light the way.  My friends are of different ethnic backgrounds, and they broaden my horizons and help to fill my life with diversity.