A Nose and a Chin

Nagging guilt has actually made me 

avoid the Cow for a while…

But, I found something that made me think 

and made me smile this morning.

Here’s a re-hash of the story 

I found this morning:

A lady in China never went to school… 

she was never taught to read or write.

She has cerebral palsy, 

so expectations were lowered for her. 

She can’t stand. She can’t use her hands.

And yet, she has published her own book… 

A book she wrote herself.

It’s titled: Greet You with a Smile. 

It took her three years to write this book. 

And, she wrote it using her nose and her chin! 

She typed the story on her ipad 

and her mobile phone.

She taught herself to read 

while watching television programs 

and by looking at a dictionary.

She has also written two short stories.

I love this quote from the author, Huang Yang: “Everyone encounters difficulties 

and setbacks in their lives. 

Some feel down about it 

and some solve it optimistically. 

Lying dead, or standing alive, 

it all depends on you.”

Huang Yang                             Photo credit: Women of China

While the news article calls Huang a girl, she is 28.

This is another story that proves that we should never set limits on what people can or can’t do.

Knuckles

The Cow’s been pretty quiet lately…

I’ve been learning a little about cerebral palsy 

hands on learning… 

I know a bit more about it now, 

not necessarily the medical terminology 

but the impact it has on a little body.

So, when I heard about ‘Knuckles’, 

I was immediately curious.  

Why? Knuckles is a chimpanzee… 

a chimpanzee with cerebral palsy!

Knuckles lives at the 

Centre for Great Apes (in Florida)

after an entertainment group he had been with,

no longer wanted him. 

He was two when he arrived. 

It seemed that Knuckles had cerebral palsy. 

At the time of his birth, 

he suffered from a lack of oxygen. 

He had poor muscle control 

and was especially weak on the left side.

 He also had a lazy eye 

and didn’t appear able to focus on objects.

 At two, Knuckles should have been

 swinging from the trees, 

but he could not climb 

and had difficulty with walking.

He also had trouble feeding 

and needed help to eat. 

Hardly surprising, early testing 

pointed to a grim future,

with almost no expectations 

for improvements in Knuckles’ ability.

 And yet, steady progress was made. 

Volunteers gave Knuckles 

some extra time and 

occupational and physical therapists 

also worked with Knuckles. 

Now, Knuckles feeds himself… 

he climbs up and down steps… 

and uses swings to hang upside down.

 Sometimes, he joins 

the other chimpanzees in running games.

 Knuckles is very aware 

of his surroundings 

and loves being tickled. 

He is also very affectionate. 

Had Knuckles been born into the wild, 

I guess he would have 

slowly starved or been 

an easy target to another animal. 

But, he was taken in and loved. 

He was recognised as having cerebral palsy

 and his therapy and efforts have paid off.

Being that we are so closely related to apes,

 I guess its no surprise that they too, 

may have cerebral palsy.

Go to the Centre for Great Apes  

to find out more.

There are more pictures at the site, too.

Today is a World’s First Day.

It’s World Cerebral Palsy Day.

The last time I posted

about this topic,

we had just been told

my little nephew would later be

 diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

Later has come and gone…

We have an official diagnosis.

Our Little Man could sit back

and complain that some of his

 brain messages don’t get

to the areas of his body

they should.

His gorgeous eyes don’t always

 pass on the images

of the beautiful things they see.

 His neck sometimes forgets

to hold his head up high

and sometimes, his little fingers

 curl in to fists.

 He’s learning so much,

but in his own time.

He’s an inspiration:

 his effort…

his determination…

 his patience…

 his happiness.

People could sit back and complain. 

They could whinge

and become frustrated

(which he sometimes does!).

 They could be dragged down

 by their misfortune.

World Cerebral Palsy Day

is giving people a chance

to make things better.

Around 17 million people,

living with cerebral palsy,

are being given the chance

to make their world better…

Or, at least, to suggest

what they would need

 to make their life easier.

Ideas will go on the

World Cerebral Palsy webpage.

Everyone can check the ideas out

 and vote on the concepts

they think will have the most

impact on improving their life.

At the end of September,

a panel will choose the best ideas,

 solutions and inventions…

In November, people will be

 invited to go on-line and suggest

 how these ideas

could be turned into realities.

From December,

the submissions will be reviewed…

And, the best thing…

The products

(currently just wishful thinking!)

will be launched this time next year

– on the 2^nd

World Cerebral Palsy Day.

What an incredible idea!

Check out the ideas here.