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Anniversaries

• February 20th, 2007

Last night, once again in an airport bar, Philadelphia this time, and again a flight delay. She came to clean my table, a woman with Downs Syndrome, pretty smile and so efficient as she cleared the glasses from previous road warriors. I thanked her and asked her how long she had worked here as I had not seen her before. She said “I am almost at my 6 month anniversary, so pretty long”. Left to my thoughts and waiting for my drink I started thinking about anniversaries, and how we claim them at certain points , how strange this marking of time. I suppose anniversaries have an element of celebration inherent in the definition, but not always. There are anniversaries of death, loss and tragic events. Anniversaries that force us to remember things we would rather not and of course anniversaries that hold no meaning… or more than our hearts can hold.

I had just spent 10 days working in New Jersey and Philadelphia with various groups of staff members who were dedicating their work life to people with disabilities. They were young, smart and full of vigor and excitement about moving people from institutions in a new and brave manner. The lives they envisioned for people once the system forced itself to really listen to people and what they wanted and dreamed of was moving… weeks like these encourage and motivate my own thinking and memories.

I leave for Manchester, England on Friday, a trip that will offer up the opportunity to spend time with my friends and do work that I love. The dates are marked clearly in my calendar but not the feelings; they are marked in my heart.

As I was paying for my bill I caught her eye and motioned for her to come over, I asked her how she got this job, did she just see an ad, or did someone tell her there was an opening. She smiled brightly and said, “Oh nothing like that, it was a birthday present from Mom, she works here at the airport and she surprised me with an interview here, I was hired on the spot”. So no service system in play here, no righteous philosophy and belief system creating jobs, just a Mom marking an anniversary of birth, an anniversary of celebration.