Disabled

I spent a couple of months at the beginning of this year being disabled. I was on crutches, couldn’t bend my leg or put any pressure on it. I was also wearing a big leg brace and could only move at a snail’s pace. That in itself is very annoying, but what shocked me even more is how mean people are to you when you’re disabled. First of all I went to the traffic department and got a disabled parking disc. I have enough trouble driving and getting in and out of the car to want to struggle with getting to and from the car. I used it once. At my sister’s wedding reception. Apart from that there was simply never parking in any of the disabled parking bays anywhere I went, including the International Airport in Cape Town and several shopping centres, or for that matter, the hospital I went to. The parking bays were always full with cars not sporting any disabled discs. Always. No parking for me. I didn’t have to use a wheelchair or anything fortunately, but I still had to try and maneuver myself out of the car and get the crutches out, and try to balance whatever I’m carrying in such a way that I didn’t have to use my hands to carry it, as my hands were full of crutches. It was such a pain, and because I started to realize that people park in disable bays so no-one with a disability could, I tried to avoid going anywhere.
So that sucks, but once you do get somewhere, you find that people are even worse. I remember one instance specifically, because I saw a girl walk into a convenience store and thought to myself that I love her haircut and the funky ensemble she was wearing. She was behind me in the check-out counter, and as it was my turn to go pay, she literally bumped me out of the way and cut in. I was in no position to stealthily cut in front of anyone. You try balancing a shopping basket and crutches. Not only are you lop sided with the weight of your groceries, you can’t really hold it properly. So being bumped really throws you off kilter, and this bitch used that to cut in front of me. I remember her because I thought she looked so funky, but it was hardly an isolated incident. People don’t stare at you when you’re disabled; they pretend you’re not there. At least the bitch at the convenience store looked back over to me after she bumped into me and I was dropping everything on the floor and gave me a cocky smile. As bitchy as that was, she at least acknowledged me. Most people would walk into you, over you, or push you off the sidewalk without even looking at you. I had no idea it would be like that! I expected stares etc, but all I encountered were people treating me like I’m invisible. I was slower and had lots more accessories and somehow became less visible. WTF. I never expected special treatment while I was disabled, just regular regard for my person would have been nice though. I was slower, fair enough, walk past me, I’ll even get out of your way, but bumping me out of the way when I’m unstable to begin with is just not cricket.
My surgeon was telling me he spent a day in a wheel chair to see what it’s like, and his eyes opened to how difficult it really is. I’m thinking maybe everyone should have a go on crutches or a wheelchair, even if it’s just for a day. We could all use a bit of education in this regard, and maybe have a little more respect for people on crutches and wheelchairs. It’s no joke.