2.48 Hidden abilities
Take one look at me and you instantly assume that you know me,
You have judged me by sight, and I must be what you think me to be.
Surely nothing can break through your ignorance and enlighten you,
Your snap judgement becoming your record of fact, set and true.
How very silly of you to be so narrow minded and failing to actually see.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
My words may not come out in a manner that is considered to be the norm,
But not every person has the ability to be shaped in order to conform.
Do my actions break from convention, or do I not act in a way that you want me to?
Is it hard for you to see someone acting independently and differently from you?
Well have I news for you, I have no intention to change or to reform.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
Rules, processes, and regulations are my life, they guide me, bind me,
Overwhelming anxiety blinds me if these for any reason these cannot be.
Schedules decree my days and timings populate every hour of every day,
Panic cripples me and freezes me if these cannot be adhered to in every way.
I have a life, I have freedoms, but one thing I am far from is free.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
Why is my disability not a hindrance and instead an alleged hidden ability?
My mind operates in a different capacity opening a new world of possibility.
Tell me or show me a process once and you will find it locked safely away,
So what if I lack the ability to process small talk or know how to play?
Different minds share different perspectives and increases overall capability.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
Having a disability makes me no less valid and no less of a person than you,
I have my place in society, I hold worth, and I will not hide away out of view.
Just because I cannot express myself normally does not mean I cannot feel,
Hateful words and actions cut very deep, the scars they leave are very real.
You can keep your labels, I know I am real and worthwhile, this I know is true.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
But hidden no more. I am proud of who I am, and I care not who knows.
Disability you say? You are wrong. I have abilities, they are just different to you.
***
Jamie Scott Watkinson-Harvey
You have judged me by sight, and I must be what you think me to be.
Surely nothing can break through your ignorance and enlighten you,
Your snap judgement becoming your record of fact, set and true.
How very silly of you to be so narrow minded and failing to actually see.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
My words may not come out in a manner that is considered to be the norm,
But not every person has the ability to be shaped in order to conform.
Do my actions break from convention, or do I not act in a way that you want me to?
Is it hard for you to see someone acting independently and differently from you?
Well have I news for you, I have no intention to change or to reform.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
Rules, processes, and regulations are my life, they guide me, bind me,
Overwhelming anxiety blinds me if these for any reason these cannot be.
Schedules decree my days and timings populate every hour of every day,
Panic cripples me and freezes me if these cannot be adhered to in every way.
I have a life, I have freedoms, but one thing I am far from is free.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
Why is my disability not a hindrance and instead an alleged hidden ability?
My mind operates in a different capacity opening a new world of possibility.
Tell me or show me a process once and you will find it locked safely away,
So what if I lack the ability to process small talk or know how to play?
Different minds share different perspectives and increases overall capability.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
Having a disability makes me no less valid and no less of a person than you,
I have my place in society, I hold worth, and I will not hide away out of view.
Just because I cannot express myself normally does not mean I cannot feel,
Hateful words and actions cut very deep, the scars they leave are very real.
You can keep your labels, I know I am real and worthwhile, this I know is true.
Disability you say, because it is what you see. You are wrong, it is a hidden ability.
But hidden no more. I am proud of who I am, and I care not who knows.
Disability you say? You are wrong. I have abilities, they are just different to you.
***
Jamie Scott Watkinson-Harvey