Kudos to the Others

I want to take a moment to give a round of applause to those Other People* in our lives…

The ones who help and support us…

Who comfort us when it really fucking hurts…

Who help us sit up when we can’t move…

Who know we are just having “one of those days” when we yell or are grouchy and happen to take it all out on them…

Who very seldom yell back…

Who know we are lying about how bad it is even when we lie about how bad it is…

Who fight on our behalf…

Who love us and hold us (and whatever else us *wink wink nudge nudge*)

Who make the shitty days tolerable by being there…

Who don’t ask for anything except for the chance to be with us…

Who cry with us, beside us, or sit stoically as we weep…

Who wipe vomit and count pills and keep track of appointments when our brains are too foggy to remember

or just assist us when we can do it all ourselves…

Who will sometimes remind us that we have or are pushing ourselves too far…

To all of you, be you abled or also disabled, who are loving and wonderful and also sometimes a little angry making…but who are trying…

We love you because you are you and without you…

The good days wouldn’t be as good…

And the bad days…would…well fuck… they are bad.

Thank you.

From the bottom of my ever loving heart.

*for lack of a better, inclusive term

About Ouyang Dan

is an extremely proggy-liberal, formerly single mommy, Native American, invisibly disabled, U.S. Navy Veteran, social justice activist and aspiring freelance writer currently living in South Korea on Uncle Sam's dime. She has a super human tolerance for caffeine and chocolate and believes she should use those powers for good. She said should. She is not a concise person, and sometimes comes on a little aggressively in comments. Sometimes her right arm still twitches when military brass walks past her, but she would rather be reading YA Lit or pwning n00bs. She can be found being cliche about music, overthinking pop culture, and grumbling about whatever else suits her fancy at her personal website, random babble.... She also writes about military issues for Change.org's Women's Rights blog. If you have something interesting to say email her at ouyangdan [at] disabledfeminists [dot] com. Lawyers in Italy looking to hold lottery winnings in her bank account may wait longer for reply.

6 thoughts on “Kudos to the Others

  1. I love this. Off to thank my partner for being an incredible Other Person. For helping me be quietly sick at the family Christmas gathering, without making a fuss about it or letting my mom know. And then for tucking me into bed when we got home, and sparing me the lecture on how I really overdid it this week.

  2. This is really hitting home for me now. I had surgery on 12/16 to verify whether or not I have endometriosis, and I didn’t tell ANYONE beyond a few friends. I specifically didn’t want his family to know because I’m very private, and I know that it will lead to uncomfortable questions about reproduction.

  3. Linking this to all my friends who have been there for me. Thank you; I couldn’t (and probably wouldn’t be able to, at the moment) have put it better.

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