Whoever said life is a walk in the park is a liar, and not just because a select lucky few of us can’t actually walk. Life just simply is not that easy. Up until this point, my blogs have focused on the positive, or how I’ve adapted to my limitations to achieve my goals in life. However, by not sharing with you the challenges I face, I am neglecting one of the major objectives of this Brand: I want people to realize that people with disabilities are just people. Notice I just used the word “people” three times in one short statement; it wasn’t an accident. I didn’t have the logo created with the “dis” crossed out of the word “disable” to portray people with disabilities as having some kind of super-human abilities, but rather to show we are all ABLE people. We all have limitations and sometimes life is difficult, but we all have the ABILITY to make the choice to disable our limits and live life to the fullest.

I’ve hesitated to share the struggles in my life because I don’t want to falsely confirm the misconception that my life is more difficult than anyone elses simply because I’m in a chair. That, and I don’t like to complain in general. But the truth is people too often assume they know my struggle because I’m in a wheelchair. This is why I’ve been handed money like a homeless person when I’m waiting on a corner, even though I’m dressed in my Gucci shoes and Polo shirt. And while I can’t dress myself or help myself to the bathroom or do whatever other physical activities, believe it or not, I consider myself extremely fortunate. I’m well-educated, employed full time, and I’m well fed. Literally, well fed, like when my aid, friend, or whoever feeds me forkfuls of my favorite entrees from my favorite Philadelphia upscale restaurants. I have great friendships, and I’ve had relationships with beautiful girls. And yes, I mean the romantic kind of relationship. I know I need to include that detail as so many people assume that is not a part of my life. I am a 26 year-old warm-blooded, fully functional male. I can assure you it is a part of my life. A big part, no pun intended. And if you’re curious, I’ve seen a recent spike in the market, as the other day I even turned down sex. So it’s not like a “take what you can get” kind of deal. I’M GOOD. My point is that my wheelchair is not a bottleneck; if anything, it’s opened my mind to see life in a way I’ll never take for granted.

To help you understand my perspective, I’ll use an analogy: it’s hard for me to not walk like it’s hard for you to not play quarterback like Nick Foles. You couldn’t do it before, you can’t do it now, and hopefully you’re not holding your breath until you can do it. But you know what? Aaron Rodgers and some others (most NFL quarterbacks, sadly) CAN play like Nick Foles. We all don’t have that gift; it’s OK! If you ever had aspirations of becoming an NFL quarterback, you probably got over it, right? Just because you can’t become an NFL quarterback doesn’t disqualify you from being the next Donald Trump, or Steven Spielberg, or whoever embodies whatever your passion is. And even their lives are hard… I don’t know how exactly, but I can guarantee it because they are people just like you and me. I can only speak for the man in the mirror; so let me tell you why my life is hard.

My life is not as pleasant when it’s dark and cold outside, and I have to wake up at 6am for work. I know I can’t just pop out of bed, but even if I could… I wouldn’t. My aid or whoever has to pry me out of bed to get me ready for work. And it’s important to me that I do well at work, so sometimes my job stresses me out. Sometimes I may fall a little behind, have to work late, or maybe I make a mistake, and it bothers me. I don’t like messing up, but it happens. And then there are girls, who I describe with the one word I use to describe anything I can’t understand: crazy. Maaa, forgive me; you’re not included under that umbrella. And then sometimes I have a rough day just because I had too much fun the night before. I’ve been known to have a habit of having too much fun. Oh well, no apologies.

I know I was rambling, but at 26 years old, they are my problems. I don’t bitch because I realize a lot of people have it worse, and I’m thankful my problems are what they are. They’re just background noise on my quest to accomplish the objectives of this brand. My disability is just a part of who I am; it is not my problem, so don’t make it yours.