[Colorado-Talk] my thoughts on living the life you want

Wed Jan 8 23:40:26 UTC 2020

Hi Melissa.
First, thank you for sharing your NFB story, and a bit about your life
moving to Colorado from New Jersey!
My comments weren’t directly about CCB and the other training centers,
but more general in nature. As an option, I think the centers are
fantastic for many individuals, and agree the expectations are laid
out in such a way that the person looking to attend should be able to
understand what they will be doing. My comments were more on the motto
itself, and my thought behind what it meant to me. Living the life I
want to live. I suppose I’ve just assumed, maybe a bit wrongly, that
my definition of independence is quite different from what the NFB may
have in mind. Taking the street crossing card solution as an example,
it’s true that I’m dependent on assistance to cross streets. However,
it’s also true that I’m the one making the decision about what street
to cross, where I want to go, and that my actions are still my own.
Another example relates to utilizing what are currently called support
service providers. While I’m getting information from a provider in
this case, I’m still the one deciding how to utilize that information
I can’t get from my eyes or ears… It’s a bit like using Aira I
suppose, only done with different forms of communication, as speech is
not always an option. I have received a lot of criticism over the
years for both my use of street crossing cards and also my use of SSP
services. To me, independence isn’t always defined by whether you do
something alone or not, rather, should be defined by your actions.
All that said, I’m also not accusing anyone on this list of such
behavior, I understand, though, that these types of different
methodologies of accessing ones environment are often frowned upon.

Wishing you a wonderful evening,
Scott

On 1/8/20, Amy Sabo via Colorado-Talk <colorado-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> hello scott,
> thanks for putting down your thoughts and feelings on this topic. it
> was written very well and, eloquently! yes, this is sooo true on all
> you had said in your message. we aren't cookie cutter people. we all
> have our strengths and weaknesses in our lives. we are all different
> besides being blind. as for me the reason that I am a active member in
> the nfb is that I felt that I was somewhat not a part of the blindness
> world. I knew blind people but, they weren't capable or compentant
> people who lived normal lives in society. I only knew my sister who
> was also blind like myself. I had hid my blindness for many years and,
> when I found the nfb I found sooo more in my life. I found confidence,
> love, hope, freedom, independence, and friendship. my life has changed
> sooo much in my life since I joinded the nfb in 1995 but, I have to
> also have doubts in my life as a blind person. but, we in the nfb we
> are all here as a family. we have issues like all families do and, we
> always will but, we believe in this slogan that you can live the life
> you want to live. it's your choice and, how you want to create and,
> live in that moment.
>
> so, that's my thoughts on this topic take care all and, I look forward
> to others here on this list to also chime on this topic!
>
>
> hugs,
> amy
>
> On 1/7/20, Scott C. LaBarre via Colorado-Talk <colorado-talk at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
>> First of all, I want to wish everyone here a very happy new year!  My
>> hope
>> is that 2020 will be outstanding for all of us.
>>
>>
>>
>> Next, I want to thank Jenny for raising the topic of what our tagline
>> "live
>> the life you want!" really means.  I appreciate everyone's thoughtful
>> comments about how it should be interpreted and implemented.
>>
>>
>>
>> Before I delve into the substance of my comments, I want to give you a
>> little  background which helps to form my perspective.  I first joined
>> the
>> NFB in 1986, and I have had the honor and privilege of being a very
>> active
>> member and leader on many different levels.  As part of that experience,
>> I
>> served on a committee which was formed in 2013, maybe even late 2012,
>> whose
>> purpose was to develop our plan for celebrating the 75th Anniversary of
>> the
>> Federation.  After some discussion, we decided that it was time to
>> rebrand
>> our messaging so that we could more effectively communicate who we are.
>> One
>> part of that rebranding was changing our tagline from  "we are changing
>> what
>> it means to be blind" to the current "live the life you want!"  Beyond
>> just
>> the tagline, we developed a comprehensive brand architecture which has
>> many
>> elements that would serve as an excellent focal point for future
>> discussions.  In any event, I mention all this because I think I have
>> some
>> idea of what we intended regarding the message we were attempting to
>> communicate.
>>
>>
>>
>> Ever since I have been involved in the NFB, there has been this
>> conception
>> that the NFB only supports and celebrates the "super blind" and that if
>> you
>> don't go about blindness in a very specific manner, you are not really
>> living the life the NFB endorses.  I emphatically and whole heartedly
>> believe that this misconception is not true!  There is no such thing as a
>> model Federationist, and there certainly is not one, singular script from
>> which we must all lead our lives.
>>
>>
>>
>> The idea of "live the life you want!" is that your blindness should not
>> hold
>> you back from pursuing your dreams and ambitions.  Undeniably all of our
>> dreams and ambitions  are limited and somewhat governed by the realities
>> we
>> face, whether those are financial, educational, , health based, or
>> otherwise.  There is no one way to live the life you want.  It doesn't
>> matter if you are pursuing a high stakes profession, working from home,
>> volunteering in the community, or not working at all.  Our main message
>> is
>> that whatever you are doing with       your life, your blindness should
>> not
>> be the chief reason holding you back from whatever brings you fulfillment
>> and purpose in life.  Our one minute message, another creation of our
>> rebranding, brings this point out.
>>
>>
>>
>> "The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
>> characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
>> expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
>> between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
>> blindness is not what holds you back."
>>
>>
>>
>> A key part of this message is that we are raising expectations.  That has
>> both an external and internal aspects to it.  On the external side, we
>> are
>> working to convince the general population that they can and should
>> expect
>> more from us.  All of us often run into very low expectations held by the
>> public.  Pretty much every time I travel to and through an airport
>> somebody
>> tells me how amazing I am for simply putting one foot in front of
>> another.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On the internal side, we should encourage one another to become the best
>> versions of ourselves that we can.  Doing so must always be done with
>> love
>> and understanding.  Every year that I am in the Federation, I learn so
>> much
>> from our members on how I can lead my life in a better way, a new
>> technology
>> trick or something that enhances my independent travel or whatever it
>> might
>> be.  I certainly haven't figured it all out, and I know that some times I
>> do
>> in fact let my blindness limit me in a way that isn't truly necessary.
>>
>>
>>
>> Regardless, we must accept people where they are in their lives and be
>> ready
>> to encourage them to achieve more when that is appropriate.  This is what
>> we
>> aim to do at our centers.  We work with people from all walks of life and
>> who have a wide variety of challenges.  No student's program is or should
>> be
>> the same.  We have some general policies and expectations, but same are
>> always adjusted to the individual student.
>>
>>
>>
>> Living the life you want is all about independence and freedom.  As our
>> founder Dr. tenBroek so eloquently  put it, we have a right to live in
>> the
>> world.  That means we have the right to be free and independent and to
>> determine our own destiny.  The exact mechanism we use to achieve that
>> freedom and independence is not the key issue, but rather that we  know
>> and
>> believe that we have the right to achieve it.  I think the Federation's
>> best
>> speech regarding independence is the Nature of Independence by Dr.
>> Jernigan
>> from the 1993 Convention.  If you haven't read it, I encourage that you
>> do
>> so.    It is available through our national website.
>>
>>
>>
>> Before closing this out, I want to address another point Jenny raised in
>> her
>> original message, the idea that perhaps we some times focus and emphasize
>> success stories based on traditional notions of success and that we don't
>> celebrate other forms of achievement.  I think this is a great point, and
>> we
>> should endeavor to paint a more comprehensive picture.  Convincing an
>> animal
>> shelter to let you volunteer despite your blindness is just as important
>> as
>> someone winning a national scholarship based on academic achievement at
>> the
>> highest level.  Both are part of living the life we want.
>>
>>
>>
>> In closing, I want to share two other element from our brand
>> architecture,
>> the Brand Promise and Value Proposition.  I do this because, for me, it
>> so
>> eloquently sums up why I am involved in our Federation.  "Together with
>> love, hope, and determination, we transform dreams into reality.  I am
>> filled with hope, energy, and love by participating in the National
>> Federation of the Blind because my expectations are raised, my
>> contributions
>> make a difference to me and to others, and I can celebrate the
>> realization
>> of my dreams with my Federation family."
>>
>>
>>
>> Warmly,
>>
>> Scott
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