HOME    text version of navigation bar

Out But Not Yet In

FROM
Break Out: Finding Freedom
When You Don't Quite Fit The Mold
James R. Hasse

"Include me out."
Samuel Goldwyn

"More handicapped people are coming out," I heard Jack, nodding slightly in my direction, whisper across the table to Tom. Jack, one of 24 people in management who had gathered for our workshop about how to effectively manage change, was sitting three feet from me on my side of the table.

Tom, sitting kitty-corner from me, realized I was eavesdropping in amusement. He had a smirk on his face but said nothing. His eyes met mine for a second but then flashed back to Jack.

"And, women," Jack continued, wide-eyed, with his back toward me. "I took another management workshop a couple of months ago, and almost a third of the class were women."

"I can believe that," Tom, still with a whimsical look on his face, agreed.

Jack was conveniently ignoring me, even though I had introduced myself to both of my table partners after parking my crutches and grabbing a chair. I had ventured outside my daily routine of familiar contacts and encountered another reaction to my disability from a person I hadn't met before.

Knowing that my gestures and facial expressions often appear distorted and exaggerated to strangers, I tried to shape a slight grin on my face to let Tom know I wasn't offended. In fact, I felt privileged to have my own private view of human nature. It was like leaving my fly open and documenting, in my mind, the people who would draw my attention to my unfortunate oversight.

[Continued On Next Page: Click Here]

STORIES FROM OUR VISITORS

[ Break Out Home | Contents | Search | Post ]

text version of navigation bar

Send mail to jhasse@jvlnet.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2001-2004 Hasse Communication Counseling. All rights reserved.