A LOVE LETTER TO MY HOMETOWN

I currently reside in my hometown, having moved here when I was five from a farm near another small town just seven miles away. Though over the years I've thought of moving, I am now content with the fact where I'm living is home.

 

Some people have suggested I move to Toronto. However, these people don't realize the fact a disabled person gets the same amount of government financial assistance per month no matter where they live. I'm just sort of managing to live where I do now on the 1400 dollars I get from the provincial government. I can't imagine what it would be like trying to make out on that amount in the city. There'd be plenty of things to do, but I couldn't afford to eat, let alone partake of the plethora of fun and enriching events.

 

Additionally, I once ran into a young woman who had a brother who was also blind and lived there. She related how he had fallen in the hole of a construction sight while the workers just stood there watching. She also told how her brother had given someone a twenty dollar bill so the person could buy cigarettes for him, only to be told the bill her brother knew to be a twenty was actually a ten and that her brother owed the person ten more dollars.

 

Contrary to moving to a bigger centre, a disabled person living in a small town as I do just has to adapt to and embrace a few things.

 

First of all, though there isn't the range of activities as in a city, there's always something to do, or at least this is the case in the town in which I reside. There may be only one concert in the park or card party at the Legion you can get to, but if you're flexible enough and are willing to go along, you'll have fun, meet people you know and have some good conversation into the bargain.

 

Second, there isn't public transit, but it's a matter of building connections with folks who are willing to give you a ride. I often joke my small town does have public transportation. Start walking in the general direction of whereever you wish to go. After a while, a friend, acquaintance or even a stranger will pull up beside you and ask where you are going and if you want a ride. Once you reach your destination, odds are you will meet a similar person there who can give you a ride home.

 

Just as in any human love relationship, my hometown is far from perfect, but the positive traits about it are what cause me to do anything but make plans to leave.