Immobilized

Posted on August 20, 2011 3:06 pm under Grandma Tidbits
| 2 Comments

I am a product of my time. Crowd control does not invoke thoughts of velvet rope defining the path to a bank teller or miles of retractable belts, indicating the winding road to the fast food checkout. For me, crowd control is linked to war protests and cops brandishing tear gas and guns. Security guards, clutching batons as they attempt to control frenzied sports fans or crazed concert attendees, hold a close second.

Age and disability are revamping that concept.      

I can walk. Strokes and neuropathy have impaired my sense of balance, so my walk is a little unsteady. While I’ll never be selected as the poster girl for coordination, I can move about my home with relative ease. Going outside poses an additional challenge. Outside, I must wear shoes, which lower the amount of sensation my feet receive. Outdoor surfaces are not as smooth and even as a home’s interior, so that adds another degree of difficulty. Nevertheless, with the help of a cane in each hand, I can walk down our driveway and navigate the sidewalk in front of our home. I’m not strong enough to walk long distances, but I can negotiate short ones without a problem.

So why do I find myself sitting in a wheelchair, when we venture into public places?

We are members of a local museum, which offers some fantastic educational films in their IMAX theater. They provide handicapped parking in front of the entrance. Inside the museum, the walk to the theater is short. Although the theater’s stairs would be difficult for me to negotiate, the museum has thoughtfully reserved the balconies for those with impaired mobility. No waiting is required either. Velvet rope stanchions mark the waiting area for other patrons, but disabled attendees are routed around them and immediately seated in a balcony. One thing stops me from walking into the theater. Inconsiderate people.

I’m not talking about an isolated incidence, a distracted individual who inadvertently jostles me. I’m not talking about the thoughtless actions of small children. I am talking about the vast majority of adults I encounter. People step on my heels, dart directly in front of me, or push me as they hurry to stand in the waiting area. The walkway is wide, there is plenty of room to walk around me. We attend the early showing and there are no shortage of seats in the theater. What is the rush? where are their manners? One guy did apologize. He muttered, “Excuse me” before he shouldered me into the wall. No. I will not excuse him. The museum continues to work on making their facilities accessible to everyone, but those efforts are undermined by mass inconsideration.

It is not just the museum. Stores, restaurants and parking lots are filled with people too inconsiderate to give an inch or wait a second. They are the biggest barricades to my mobility and I am resentful each time I must use a wheelchair to protect myself from them.

Yes, there are folks who hold doors and wait patiently when I am slow. If you are one of the considerate minority, I thank you. As for the rest of you, Grandma’s thinking about buying a baton.

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