J U S T I C E   N O W: Who Isn't Physically Challenged on Some Level? (No One) Every one of us is born with some "physical" challenge. How come? Because nobody is "perfect." (Human beings just don't come in that flavor.) Your own personal physical challenge might be the fact that you get frequent colds, or have an overbite, or weak ankles, or poor eyesight, or skin that sunburns really easily, or a million other things. Since we all have at least  one thing about us that's not perfect, we ought to be more tolerant of each other's physical challenges. But we're not. How Come? Probably because the physical challenges most of us deal with are just not that obvious. But when we see a deaf person, or someone with cerebral palsy, or a cancer patent who's had a leg amputated, the physical challenge they are dealing with is right out there. And when most of us are around people with very obvious physical challenges we stop seeing the person and only see their challenge. Think about it. When you pass someone in a wheelchair or someone walking with the help of a seeing eye dog, do you ever think, "Oh, that poor person." Or "I'm sure glad that isn't me!" Or "I wonder how they got that way?" Most of us do. When these thoughts go through our heads we aren't seeing the person in front of us any more. We have made them invisible because, we're just focusing on what they've lost (some physical ability), or what they aren't (a person who can walk without assistance). Instead of what they are... human being with feelings, ideas, dreams. A human being who can obviously do lots of things very well. It's tough living with heavy duty physical challenges. But it's a whole lot tougher when most people you meet only see you in terms of what you can't do instead of what you can do. Start opening your mind and your heart and seeing at what is there, not what is missing. B E Y O N D L A B E L S     B e e n   T h e r e S T O R I E S