I just received an e-mail from a teenager who used to volunteer to help me through a local program. She would come every week and spend a few hours with me and we would do activities and projects together-or just talk sometimes. This year she is a senior in high school and very busy! However, she wrote to ask if I would like to get together with her some afternoon and catch up. As I read the e-mail, I remembered her from three years ago when we first met and she was just a sophomore in high school. I can't wait to see her now that she is a grown-up high school senior.
I have been in this program where teenagers and people with disabilities get together weekly for almost 8 years now. During that time, I've worked with three teens. It's always been a mutual learning experience. We cracked jokes about my disability at times-I teased one young man that I would make him go on a cable show with me to do quadriplegic cooking! There are times they have come to me with issues in their life that are pretty serious and I'm playing the role of a mentor. Then there was the time when one of my teens accompanied me on a ski trip. We had a blast.
Whenever anyone asks me who gets the most out of this program, I find that difficult to answer since both of us obviously do benefit. And as I watched each teenager grow up and move on with their lives, I feel very blessed for the time we've spent together.
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