disability as a prelude to blessings??!!

 I am halfway through an audiobook The Boys in the Boat, about rowing in Seattle nearly one hundred years ago.  It details the lives of young men preparing for the 1936 Olympics. One student found summer work as a logger and relayed his experiences toiling alongside a disabled WW1 veteran. The vet's vocal cords were, due to the war, almost nonexistent yet he commanded his logging horses in an effectual whisper as opposed to the  shouting that all of the other men used. 

The story tells of how this disability actually assisted him, that his horses would pull harder for him than any other logger, due to this seeming gentleness of speech. I abhor the animal slavery business yet was moved by this account. My focus remained on the disabled man and how he continued on with his work, doing what no other could.

I can only wonder what he was like before his disability. I have a friend who, after her stroke, moved and spoke in an entirely different manner after the incident. Because of this change, animals viewed her as much less threatening and a timid cat became her friend, when no other person could approach that cat. 

What are the so-called gifts of any disability? My own battle with Lyme disease served to change my eating habits for the better. And I had previously never been able to drink water without throwing it up or at least feeling horribly nauseated. One of my 'assignments' from my Lyme doctor was to drink as much water as possible. It was a difficult task.  But, after two years of dedication to it, I succeeded and find myself with a new and important freedom -I can drink water with nothing added to it (whereas before, I had to add a splash of something to disguise the 'taste') and for that I am so very grateful!

-GG