Emerald
It started with an email I got in the middle of the week sent to me through my facebook page, from a young lady named Emerald Kehler. Emerald and I have never had the privilege of meeting, but through our mutual connection to Shane she reached out, not knowing what a critical time it was for me.
First, a little history. Shane was one of the first generations of children with severe disabilities to be supported in the mainstream life of school. It took a lot of team effort by a lot of committed people to facilitate such successful inclusion for that young man. We all worked hard together to ensure that his education would happen as part of the typical school setting, and be individualized as needed to ensure that his needs were met as well. We did a great job, particularly with the students, however that didn't save me from receiving the anonymous letter from a "concerned parent" in September of 2004 telling me of how they felt he should be in a separate 'specialty' school, that their tax dollars were being wasted, that they'd get a petition going to make it happen....some day, when I'm back in a stronger place, I'll share the whole thing. But for now, suffice it to say, someone who didn't have the courage to sign their name, managed to enforce our resolve that Shane did need to be in that 'typical' setting, so that the next generation of parents would have a clearer understanding of how all students he connects with are benefiting, and won't be sending stupid letters to other parents who struggle with the day to day challenges of having a child with special needs. We know from all the wonderful things that have happened since Shane's passing just how successful we were at what we did and how those ripples of understanding are going to touch countless numbers of people we'll never know about, but the ripples of that have also started to come back to me, to help me through the tough days as well, and one such ripple was in the form of the story that Emerald wrote about Shane that she shared with me......it went as follows...
Hello Lynda, you may not know me, but i was friends with Shane, and I just wanted you to know how he changed my life. I know he did wonders in a lot of peoples lives. I wrote a story about him. I hope you like it..
An Angel In Disguise
Friends are the family we get to choose ourselves. Shane and I met back in elementary he was in grade 5, I was in grade 4. I had just moved to a new school and had very few friends, I remember the first time Shane an I met. It was lunch and Shane and Mrs. Hill were walking down the hallway and I was walking the other way, when Mrs. Hill said hello i immediately said hello back, but then I felt bad because i knew Shane couldn't talk. As I was about to walk away completely embarrassed something completely amazing that would change my life forever happened, Shane turned his head, looked at me with his big sparkly blue eyes and started laughing. From that day on I always made sure to say hi and have a little chat with Shane whenever I could.As days slipped into weeks, and weeks into months, and months into years we all grew up, and Shane continued to brighten my day when I thought it couldn't get any worse. Shane didn't care what I looked like or where I came from he wanted to be my friend anyway and it felt amazing. Shane always laughed at the most serious moments, there was this time during the moment of silence Shane started laughing, I thought it was funny and started giggling, by the end of the moment everyone was in stitches!
Shane was the only one who could make me laugh when I was a blink away from crying. Though Shane had many struggles from birth he was always teaching, and the people around him continued to learn. Some things he taught me is one smile can make someone else's day so much better, also that when people think you can't do things it's just more reason to fight through the struggle and prove them all wrong, and even when you going through a lot you can still give, and help someone else! Lastly when your looking for a hero don't look on the outside because their just regular people, look on the inside and you will find your hero, Shane was my hero. Shane's life was only 17 short years, he taught everyday he was here, proved many people wrong too many times to count, and loved everyone he cared for with all his heart. Things that I remember so vividly when I think of Shane is his smile was amazing, completely indescribable, his laugh was so infectious, completely unforgettable, and a small frail boy with a huge heart of gold.
I hope you enjoyed, and I hope you now understand how much Shane helped me in all my dark moments. Take care. Emerald Kehler
Thank you Emerald...I hope you know how much you helped me through some of my dark days as well.
I had another exciting thing happen last week as well. I submit a lot of stuff electronically through a site called "Sonicbids"...it's such an amazing time in history where you can send your thoughts and music to points all over the world, promoting and sharing what you do. Last week I got word that "When she Dreams" has been chosen for radio play by an internet radio station out of California called "Women of Substance" ....I figure Shane is out there in the universe working his magic, making sure Mom gets something sent her way to keep her spirits up....this week there was a lot of lifting being done!
http://www.live365.com/stations/breenoble"Women of Substance" Radio is a streaming, online radio station which airs 24/7 on the Live365 Network. The station features female artists and singer/songwriters that deliver high quality music that speaks to listeners through vocal excellence, depth of character and emotion. "Women Of Substance" features label artists and Indie artists side by side within the playlist giving lesser known artists the opportunity to be heard alongside women who have already been recognized for their excellence in their genre by mainstream media.They are working hard to promote the fantastic Indie artists on their station. They have featured station ads on Live365.com and are spreading the word about their artists' news, shows and music through blogs and targeted marketing on sites like Facebook and MySpace. Each month's top 5 Indie songs are featured on WOS Radio's MySpace and Facebook pages as well.Their listeners enjoy many different genres. The only criteria is that they play great songs. They develop and promote many genre-specific and topical shows. See their station page for show schedule. This is a great gig for any female artist to gain exposure. The station owners are always looking for more ways to promote their artists, so "stay tuned".
I don't have any word on when the song might be aired, only that it will...if I hear more I'll let you know...but for now, this is a good start from where I am.
Till next time,
Lynda
http://www.musicwriter.ca/
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