Dare to Dream

I remember the phone call clearly.

“I’m an intern at a United Cerebral Palsy organization. I work with a man who has a dream to do public speaking and I hear you might be able to help,” the young voice said.
“Perhaps. Can I speak with the person?”

A few minutes later, I met Curtis on the phone and we were talking about his dream to speak in front of groups. Four months in the future, we were doing a “Dare to Dream” workshop in his part of the state. We agreed that he would be one of the trainers. We exchanged contact information and set a date to meet in person.

The day before the workshop, a colleague and I met Curtis, a man with an amazing light in his eyes and many dreams in his heart. As we got to know each other, he shared the ‘best day of his life” as a weekend when he went out of state and joined other voices for the rights of persons with disabilities. We were sitting with a civil rights activist and we were in awe, open to learn.

He then shared the “worst day of his life” and it turned out to actually be a nightmare that lasted several days. His personal assistant had helped him into bed on a Thursday evening, put the phone on the bed and didn’t return for four days. Curtis had called the police and asked for help but no one came. He was not able to get out of bed without assistance. We cried as we listened to his story. With his permission, we wiped the tears from his face. No wonder he’s an activist.

Our time together flew by quickly as we shared laughter, tears and even some silence. After a couple of hours together, this gentle giant said, “There is something I’ve always wondered about. Perhaps you two can help me understand.”
We nodded, “We’ll try.”
And then he leaned close and said, “What does it feel like to walk?”
Our new friend has never taken a step. The three of us shared our feelings and ideas. We decided that walking is just a way to get from one place to another and that we should all be able to do that equally as easy. But we know that isn’t the way it is. We believe that when society views people with disabilities as having equal value and equal importance that will be the case.

Curtis was an activist and a dreamer the rest of his life. He told us that he dreamed of feeling his toes in the sand on a beach. Curtis has left life as we know it on this physical plane. We can imagine the smile on his face and the twinkle in his eyes as he wiggles those toes in the sand and walks wherever he is.