Have you ever thought about the words you use to describe yourself?
We are very intentional with the words we choose when it comes to Callie, her abilities and what labels we bestow on ourselves.
Because words matter.
Especially the words that you assign to yourself and your abilities.
We say that Callie “has” a prosthetic leg……instead of Callie “lost” her leg.
We say that we were “picked” for this journey….instead of this “happened to us.”
We say “prosthetic leg” instead of “fake” leg….because to Callie, they both are her legs.
One just happens to be made of flesh and bone and the other is made of titanium and steel.
We say “differently abled” most of the time because Callie doesn’t consider herself “disabled.” She simply has to do things differently than others do.
We say “adaptive” athlete instead of “disabled” athlete.
We say that we are “growing through” a hard time instead of “going through” a hard time.
We ask “what is this teaching us” instead of “why is this happening to us.”
We say we are “bridge builders” and “guides” instead of “victims” as we advocate for inclusion and representation.
Words only have power if you assign meaning to them.
For our family, we assign words to our life that are deeply rooted in gratitude, positivity, strength, and resilience.
Not focused on what we’ve lost, how we are “less than,” or ravaged by hardship.
Because we have the power to create the life we deserve.
With each and every word we pick.
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