[blindkid] A Poem

[dhammelia at aol.com]

A great statement of the proper attitude!



-----Original Message-----
From: Carrie Gilmer <carrie.gilmer at gmail.com>
To: Blind Kid Mailing List, (for parents of blind children) <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wed, Dec 5, 2012 9:48 pm
Subject: [blindkid] A Poem


My son (Jordan Richardson) wrote this poem once to present to other younger 
lind kids, I. Think you might like it too.
So You Want To Be...
So you want to be,
enator,
octor,
armer;
Whatever your heart desires,
ere are some things, 
hat you will need:
xcellent travel skills,
 thirst for knowledge,
n idea that blind is respectable.
Have you heard,
hat blind people've done it before?
r. Jacob Bolotin
r Senator Thomas Pryor Gore?
o you want to be,
og whisperer,
oliceman,
eacher;
Whichever one you choose,
ou will surely succeed,
f you take the advice,
hat I know that you'll need.
Be on time to your job,
on't accept unneeded help,
nd you won't get caught in a mob,
f the unemployed.
Before you decide,
hat you will be,
hen you are still quite young,
ake sure you learn Braille,
nd the screen-reader called JAWS.
on't be late to class,
urn homework in on time,
ork hard to be sure,
ou do more than just pass.
As well as all of these,
ou know that you need,
he attitude,
hat you CAN succeed.
To be successful,
ou know what you need? 
ou need attitude,
f determination and pride,
on't ever feel,
he cane is something to hide.
No matter what it be,
on't give up on your dream,
on't listen to the musn'ts, the won'ts or the shouldn'ts,
ots of blind people who have succeeded,
ere told that they couldn't.
To reach your dream,
ou need confidence,
hat you can receive,
rom the people in this room,
s well as those you find in Kernel books,
r here at convention.
To be successful,
ou know what you really need?
ou need to read fluently,
hich you can do by reading a lot,
ead Braille and
ead it alot, 
ead it whether you want to or not.
ind something that you like
nd take it wherever you go.
I've read a book
n a bus
n a tree
nder the covers is just fine with me;
 can do it
o can you.
If you don't believe me,
ou know you can call
r. Jerry Whittle
r Mrs. Barbara Cheadle,
hey won't mind at all.
For the Parents:
o you want your kid to be,
uccessful,
appy,
ndependent;
Here are some things,
ou will need to do;
ake them everywhere,
ith the cane.
orgetting it
ill bring later strain,
e the mean parent
nd make them do chores.
This you must do,
o be sure,
hat your child,
rows up confidently.
To make sure,
our child learns real good
ou know what you should do?
ou should push the school 
o get them Braille.
o get your child 
he perfect education
ou know what you should do?
ou should educate the teachers,
bout blindness and what to do.
If you have more questions
ou know who you should call?
all Dr. Ruby Ryles,
nd Dr. Fred Schroeder too,
hey won't mind at all if you do.
Back to the kids...
So you want to be
resident
stronaut
lympic champion
aybe you'll be the first.
So you want to be
usician
echanic
ancer
ou want them so bad you could burst;
To become these things
ou know where you should go?
o the NFB's Buddy Program,
n Louisiana,
olorado
r Minnesota too
o become successful
n whatever you choose
o to these places
here i know you won't lose.
Go to YMCA programs
ry some summer camps too
ntil you find one that you like
ry a few.
For the parents again...
o you want your child to be
 good choice maker
onest
oal setting
f you want your child
o be all tree
ake this advice and
ou'll yell with glee!
o help your child
e the beat that they can be
t takes all
o be all that they can be.
To help your child
cheive this success
how them the NFB
nd programs they provide
f you need any help 
ou know you can call
r. Marc Maurer
nd my Mom too
hey will be ecstatic
f you do.
Thank you!
ordan Richardson
Who..now at age 22, worked on the Outreach Staff of the Governor of Minnesota 
ast summer at the state capitol building and is now presently nearly half way 
hrough his senior year of college majoring in political science. He took the 
us from the suburbs to the capitol downtown four days a week and tied his own 
ie. :)

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