Guess where I put my palm on Palm Sunday....

I was thinking about Nouwen's work at L'Arche and Daybreak, communities for people with developmental disabilities, this morning as we waited to go into church for Palm Sunday. I saw a few seniors on canes and walkers and there I sat in my wheelchair, amidst a few hundred people - adults and kids, with my palm on my lap precariously.

I leaned down to put my palm on the net under my wheelchair so it wouldn't go flying and hit someone in the face (I do not make this stuff up) and a little girl around 8 years old leaned down with me to see what I was doing. She was fascinated by the fact that I stuck the palm somewhere out of sight - but where? Perhaps she thought I was just chucking it onto the floor. Or maybe she thought I had some wonderful mysterious case under there.

{visual description: A picture showing the front of a wheelchair. Under the seat there is a net strung horizontally that is attached to all four sides of the wheelchair and holds items such as a sweatshirt. In front of the net and also attached to the wheelchair is an open bag showing a comb and a few other items.}

The little girl and I exchanged smiles. Her father looked down at me and yanked her away, moving her to a different place among the crowd. I felt saddened by his reaction but as she was pulled away, the little girl smiled at me again, broke away from her dad and came back to stand next to me. He looked over and followed her back, standing awkwardly as he coaxed her away, finally, into a different part of the crowd.

I was just thinking about how different Mass must be at L'Arche and Daybreak, where someone showing up who has a disability is the "norm". Certainly I yearn for the day when I see more people with disabilities able to get to church if they want to, having issues like transportation and access resolved. It's not just so I have more disability community there, although that would be nice.

It's also because we all benefit from being around each other and enriching each others' lives. That only happens when, like little children, we set aside our fears , and let other people in.