The Lonely Roller Coaster Ride

This actually happened several months ago, but Adored Wife is starting to get into the blog and gave me permission to tell this story.

She's a little self-conscious about using a cane or a handicapped placard for the car, but necessity has required her to get over these things.  Her flexibility isn't great but she doesn't have any trouble supporting her weight--there's some weakness on the right side but the cane is mostly because she has limited peripheral vision and balance.  She doesn't walk like a typical "cane user"--she primarily needs it to feel where the ground is and keep herself stable.

So sometimes she doesn't look like she needs it.

She can ride certain roller coasters, at least the ones with full neck support.  This strikes me as weird, but the doctor has officially cleared her for it--something about the force pushing her head back into the support makes it okay.

So at the amusement park several months ago she took a lonely roller coaster ride and felt VERY self-aware about it.  She got to go in the special line for disabled persons so she wouldn't have to stand too long and for some reason she and Graphics Magician were put on a train by themselves, while everybody else waiting for the line was watching.

And AW said she could actually feel the change in attitude of the crowd, when she had a great deal of difficulty getting in the ride car.  She's sensitive to what people think, and when you have a person who doesn't LOOK disabled, carrying a cane she doesn't really lean on and getting on a roller coaster, there may be some people who look a little askance at that.  I have to confess I might myself.

Trying to get in the car, though, showed up what she can and can't do; among other things she had to use both hands to physically lift her right leg into the car.  She felt a lot more compassion and sympathy coming from the onlookers after she did manage to get herself settled.

But she still doesn't know why the nice ride operators gave her and our son the ride to themselves.  We're sure they had their reasons.

Hope all's well out there, friends, and God bless.