Day before yesterday, I went to Gillette to have my Baclofen pump refilled. The appointment itself was nothing spectacualr, or remarkable. In fact, just the opposite. When I was finished, I headed out to the lobby to call my ride, and begin what was probably going to be at least a 45 minute wait with pretty much nothing to do. After I called them, I called my mom to tell her that I would be back to my apartment as soon as I could, but that I was waiting on a ride, and we both knew how long that could take. Just as my mom was asking me a question about how the appointment went, three ladies, one of which is in a wheelchair come walking up and start responding to everything I'm saying to my mom, without realizing that I'm on the phone.
When I finished my conversation with my mom, I apologized to the three of them, and explained to them that I had been on the phone. For a brief moment, she (the lady who I later found out was Megan's mom) was very very embarrassed by the entire situation. While her mom is doing her best to get over her embarrassment, Megan is just grinning from ear to ear and giggling going like a little school girl, because although she was nonverbal, she was very well aware of what was going on around her, and she was very well aware of what was taking place in this particular situation. Eventually, like a lot of people have been doing, her mom started asking questions about Fergie. They started out as just basic questions like, "what can Fergie do for you?" Or "how long have you had her?" Surprisingly and delightfully though, it eventually turned into her asking me whether I thought Megan having a service dog could, or what benefit her in any way. She went on to explain that Megan was nonverbal, but was learning how to use a communication device to communicate.
With every question I asked, I maintained eye contact with Megan, because I knew that even if she couldn't use words to respond, her eyes, and her body languge would tell me everything I wanted to know. I started out by asking her if she had ever thought about wanting a service dog. That was a resounding "YES!" I then asked her if she was efficient with her communication device yet, and she didn't feel like she was. I asked her if she used a switch to activate her communication device, and she said yes. Then I asked her the most pertinent question of all in my opinion: wouldn't it be nice to be able to pick up something off the floor by yourself without having to get human help? That was an even bigger yes than the two before. With that, it was settled in my mind. There was no reason that I saw that such a bright young woman was so much enthusiasm at the prospect of being as independent as possible shouldn't, or couldn't have a dog.
Once there was a break in Megan and I's conversation, her mom asked me for my e-mail address. I gladly give it to her because in the short time that Megan and I had been talking, I sensed some major potential within her, and if there was anything I could do to maintain communication with her once we left that building, I was going to do it. As of now, I haven't yet heard from her since we left the clinic day before yesterday. I'm hoping I will soon though! After I left, I started thinking about the fact that she's probably never had a conversation that didn't consist of yes or no questions so that she could answer them effectively. If at all possible, I want to be a part of that very first intellectual conversation that doesn't consist solely of yes or no questions. That's part of the reason I'm putting this out here. I'm hoping that maybe her and her mom will be surfing the Internet, happen to run across SaidSimple, and in turn, come across my blog, read it, and realize just how special I thought Megan was!
With all that being said, I feel that there is only one thing left to do: Megan: I want you to know that as soon as you feel like you have become as efficient as you possibly can become with your communication device, it would be my honor and pleasure to be able to have your first entirely independent full length conversation! Even if we can't do it in person, I would love to be able to correspond with you by name now once you get that all figured out! Just from the brief time I had the pleasure of interacting with you, I saw something special in you, and I am 100% positive that you will be able to go anywhere you want to go in life! Keep up the hard work, keep holding her head high, and most of all, keep sharing your infectious laughter with the entire world! 