Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Oct/94

Contributor - Allison Van Slageren

Title - Who is that Kid with the Walker?

Topic - Parenting

On September 12, 1990 at 5:55 a.m., a little boy entered into my world - 9 weeks early. To this day, I am still amazed at the feeling of love and protection that came over me when I heard the first cry of our very sick little boy. Along with the wonderful feelings came a lot of fear. What if God chooses to take my precious son? What if something goes wrong? So many questions.

Four years later, Aaron is a happy, healthy little boy. The motherly feelings of love and protection have grown stronger as each day passes. But the fears still surface at times. When Aaron was 13 months he was diagnosed as having cerebral palsy (CP). Because of complications at birth, Aaron suffered brain damage in the nerve centre which sends messages from the brain to the muscles. It has mostly affected the movement of his legs and he walks with a walker. The questions and the fears are still there. How will other children treat Aaron? Will they tease him? How will his teachers respond? How can 1, as his mother, encourage him to be all that God wants him to be?

When my husband accepted the call to St. Catharines, I began to see again how wonderfully our great God loves and cares for His children. Although the fears and questions still surface at times, I am continually amazed at how God quiets them with the people He brings into our lives. If I was asked how to respond to a person with a disability, I would give examples from our personal as well as our church family.

Almost every Sunday Aaron gets in his walker and slowly makes his way to the front to sit on the steps to hear the children's message. When it's over he gets in his walker and barrels (yes, he is getting quite fast) down the aisle just like the other children.

I will never forget one Sunday when he was walking slowly out of church. His friend Katelyn saw him behind all the others. She turned around, came back to him, put her hand on his walker and chatted as the two friends walked down the aisle. Katelyn sees Aaron as her friend who happens to walk with a walker.

Children can teach us so much. They have no fear, just curiosity. They ask questions, and then accept a person for who they are. Toddlers see Aaron's walker as a great toy and are not pleased when Aaron needs it back. It is not a hard task to find a willing hand to carry his walker up or down the stairs. Children like Aaron because he is a happy, friendly child and as his friends, they care and help him when he needs it.

It is easy to make assumptions when people see Aaron. Some people assume, that because he has a physical disability, he must have other developmental disabilities. Often the two go together but when a person takes a few minutes to get to know Aaron, they find he is a normal, intelligent boy who walks with a walker.

Many times I need to be reminded by those around me that Aaron is progressing in his therapy. I need tips on where to go for assistance. I need support when I forget that Aaron is a normal little boy and I get caught up in his disability. I need time away sometimes. God has truly blessed me with friends who have had the courage to get to know Aaron and as a result have no fears in helping me care for him.

In October, Aaron and his sister, Beth Ann, will be in my brother's wedding party. When I tactfully suggested that they may want to think about Aaron not being a normal little boy walking down the aisle, I was not so tactfully reminded by my brother about the love, acceptance and pride for Aaron that our families have. Even mothers need to be reminded.

Aaron has CP but there are so many different disabilities in our churches. Some are physical or developmental or emotional or a learning disability. We, as members of God's family, need to welcome them all as individuals loved by God. Our churches need to be accessible to all - figuratively as well as physically. We represent Jesus Christ to these people and to those who love them. Try to get past the fears of the disability. Get to know the person and love him or her with the love of Jesus Christ.

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