Seen and Unseen

 I love St. Lawrence Market.  If I could, I’d flaming live there!

On September 21st, it will be my 23rd year anniversary of selling my artwork at the St. Lawrence Market. Generally speaking, I would say that 99% of the time the people I interact with there are friendly and respectful. Sometimes, I run into absolute knob heads who talk about me as if I’m not even there, or some who actually pray over me, trying to evoke the power of God to have Him “cure” my disability.  Most people, however, like the other vendors and my regular customers, treat me with kindness and the utmost respect.

I feel seen, and no different from anyone else.

This past Saturday, I met many people who were so friendly and enthusiastic about my artwork.  One couple truly stood out from the rest.  The man said that he was from Ireland and that he had some of my artwork there, because he had purchased some from my booth years ago and had taken it back with him. The woman said that she was from Britain and would buy some of my cards and take them home to show them to her friends.

That made me happy and feel seen.  Well, not only me but also my artwork, too. Maybe I’ll become a famous international artist one day!

I also felt happy about the discussion the three of us had about accepting people for who they are and showing them kindness.  We all agreed that it was the only way to move forward in our future.

After working at the Market, I headed over to Global Pets. It’s a regular routine for me, because I need to buy food for my three cats and spoil them with new toys and treats.

 Whether I’m on my own, or if one of my PSWs is accompanying me, the manager of this Global Pets always talks to me directly and respectfully.  Perhaps it’s because she has a son who has Cerebral Palsy and understands how ableism can hurt a person. 

After that, I went to Rexall and browsed around for a while.  Cassandra, one of my PSWs/friends, met me there, and together, we headed to the Spaghetti Factory. We had no reservation, but knew that it would be easy to get a table at 4:30.

Ten minutes later, Cassandra and I were sitting at a table with the usual complimentary roll of bread,, garlic butter, and glasses of water.

Now it was time to order our meals. I pointed to the letters, words, and phrases on my communication board, and Cassandra interpreted what I had said to the server.  I wanted my usual: a Bellini with extra ice to make it slushy, spaghetti with spicy meat sauce (extra sauce on the side) and a Caesar salad (with extra dressing on the side.)

The dinner, as usual, was delicious.  The service, however, left much to be desired. The server barely looked at me and never spoke to me. In fact, it seemed to me as if they were trying their hardest not to look at me at all!  The only thing that impressed me was the fact that they had given me a cup and a half of Bellini to make sure that it was very slushy.

I gave that server a 15% tip.

The server I had the week before received a 25% tip from me.  They were friendly, talked directly to me, and even looked at my communication board themselves to understand what I was saying.

This past Saturday I zoomed home in my power wheelchair, just like I do every weekend evening, leaving Cassandra several blocks behind me. Born to Be Wild played in my head. Inwardly, I cursed those who walked slowly ahead of me in clumps of two or three, or those who focused more on their phones than the people around them. I smiled broadly at the people who noticed me and let me pass. 

After a long day, I was exhausted and just wanted to cuddle my cats and put on some cozy clothes.

I was so close. I was on the south east corner of Church and Carlton, waiting for the light to turn green. From the west side of the street, a man was pulling a cart, filled with various items, behind him. When he reached the corner I was on, he started to talk to me.

“Oh my god,” he said. “I love you!  I love you! The whole world loves you, too! You’re so beautiful! The whole world thinks you’re beautiful, too!  And, you smell so good, too! If I wasn’t so drunk I’d kiss you!”

The man disappeared & the light turned green. As I crossed the road to go to my apartment, I couldn’t help chuckling that this man had indeed seen me!