Good Gloves

In my last post I mentioned gloves that probably won't be helpful, at least for a while. Today I want to mention a very practical use for gloves.

A few days ago I got into a conversation with a woman I met in a store. She was using a wheelchair and told me she ALWAYS wears gloves when she leaves her own home because the ground, sidewalks, and even some public floors are likely to be full of germs. When the wheels of the chair role over them the germs are carried directly to her hands unless she's wearing gloves. Besides dirt and mud, the surfaces may have animal urine, saliva or mucus from people who spit on them, and many other unsanitary substances.

When she arrives home the gloves go directly into the dirty clothes to be washed before they're used again.

Motorized wheel chairs are less of a problem because users don't need to keep their hands on the wheels. However I would strongly suggest that anyone using the traditional type of chair have numerous pairs of washable gloves and wear some any time they go outside.

Counting Our Blessings

A few weeks ago I blogged about how lucky we are because of all the technological advances that make the lives of people with disabilities much easier than they were in the past. We now have external things like motorized wheelchairs and digital hearing aids, internal devices like heart monitors and joint replacements, and many medications that keep conditions under control. Truly we have come a long way.

But many people in the world still don't have access to things like that. Some in America and thousands in other countries are unable to afford them.

A while back I mentioned an organization called Joni and Friends that helps people with various disabilities. One thing they do is collect wheelchairs, crutches, walkers, etc. that are no longer needed and deliver them to people, often in third world nations, who would never be able to get them otherwise. Please go to http://www.joniandfriends.org/pg_wheelchair.php to see what they do.

As we count our blessings during this season of Thanksgiving perhaps that website will inspire some of us to help others.

Wheel Chairs

     When I was young it was rare to see people using wheelchairs in public places because before the Americans With Disabilities act it was nearly impossible for them to get around. Ramps in public buildings and curb cuts on street corners have made life much easier.

     Motorized chairs have also made life a lot easier for people who need them. And it's possible, though it can be expensive, to get homes remodeled so the bathrooms and kitchens are useable by people who can't stand or walk.

     But there's one problem that still exists. Lots of times when people see someone in a wheelchair they don't look them in the face. If someone else is standing or walking with them, those people will address the companions and act as if the one in the chair isn't even there. How rude!

     Maybe the people who can't figure out the obvious fact that using a wheelchair doesn't make someone less human are the ones with the serious disability.