[blindkid] A Poem

[Carrie Gilmer]

My son (Jordan Richardson) wrote this poem once to present to other younger blind kids, I. Think you might like it too.

So You Want To Be...

So you want to be,
Senator,
Doctor,
Farmer;

Whatever your heart desires,
Here are some things, 
That you will need:
Excellent travel skills,
A thirst for knowledge,
An idea that blind is respectable.

Have you heard,
That blind people've done it before?
Dr. Jacob Bolotin
Or Senator Thomas Pryor Gore?
So you want to be,
Dog whisperer,
Policeman,
Teacher;

Whichever one you choose,
You will surely succeed,
If you take the advice,
That I know that you'll need.

Be on time to your job,
Don't accept unneeded help,
And you won't get caught in a mob,
Of the unemployed.

Before you decide,
What you will be,
When you are still quite young,
Make sure you learn Braille,
And the screen-reader called JAWS.
Don't be late to class,
Turn homework in on time,
Work hard to be sure,
You do more than just pass.

As well as all of these,
You know that you need,
The attitude,
That you CAN succeed.

To be successful,
You know what you need? 
You need attitude,
Of determination and pride,
Don't ever feel,
The cane is something to hide.

No matter what it be,
Don't give up on your dream,
Don't listen to the musn'ts, the won'ts or the shouldn'ts,
Lots of blind people who have succeeded,
Were told that they couldn't.

To reach your dream,
You need confidence,
That you can receive,
From the people in this room,
As well as those you find in Kernel books,
Or here at convention.

To be successful,
You know what you really need?
You need to read fluently,
Which you can do by reading a lot,
Read Braille and
Read it alot, 
Read it whether you want to or not.
Find something that you like
And take it wherever you go.

I've read a book
On a bus
In a tree
Under the covers is just fine with me;
I can do it
So can you.

If you don't believe me,
You know you can call
Mr. Jerry Whittle
Or Mrs. Barbara Cheadle,
They won't mind at all.

For the Parents:
So you want your kid to be,
Successful,
Happy,
Independent;

Here are some things,
You will need to do;
Take them everywhere,
With the cane.
Forgetting it
Will bring later strain,
Be the mean parent
And make them do chores.

This you must do,
To be sure,
That your child,
Grows up confidently.

To make sure,
Your child learns real good
You know what you should do?
You should push the school 
To get them Braille.
To get your child 
The perfect education
You know what you should do?
You should educate the teachers,
About blindness and what to do.

If you have more questions
You know who you should call?
Call Dr. Ruby Ryles,
And Dr. Fred Schroeder too,
They won't mind at all if you do.

Back to the kids...

So you want to be
President
Astronaut
Olympic champion
Maybe you'll be the first.

So you want to be
Musician
Mechanic
Dancer
You want them so bad you could burst;

To become these things
You know where you should go?
To the NFB's Buddy Program,
In Louisiana,
Colorado
Or Minnesota too
To become successful
In whatever you choose
Go to these places
Where i know you won't lose.

Go to YMCA programs
Try some summer camps too
Until you find one that you like
Try a few.

For the parents again...
So you want your child to be
A good choice maker
Honest
Goal setting
If you want your child
To be all tree
Take this advice and
You'll yell with glee!
To help your child
Be the beat that they can be
It takes all
To be all that they can be.

To help your child
Acheive this success
Show them the NFB
and programs they provide
If you need any help 
You know you can call
Dr. Marc Maurer
And my Mom too
They will be ecstatic
If you do.

Thank you!
Jordan Richardson

Who..now at age 22, worked on the Outreach Staff of the Governor of Minnesota last summer at the state capitol building and is now presently nearly half way through his senior year of college majoring in political science. He took the bus from the suburbs to the capitol downtown four days a week and tied his own tie. :)