HANDICAPPED
Many years ago I worked for a program that taught simple vocations to handicapped people -- people now known as having special needs. Most of the workers in the program had mental and physical handicaps. I felt so sorry for those people when I first started the job. "How unhappy they must be," I thought. However, I was to learn a lot about life from them. I left there with a completely different perspective. The handicapped people I saw were no less happy than other people. They just had a different standard of happiness. They found it in the simple things of life--a touch, a smile, good company, good food, simple fun. In fact, they may be happier than the rest of us so-called "normal" people. The dispositions of those in the work program were what one would expect in any other setting, allowing for differences in personalities. They laughed and loved as much as anyone--probably more so. They were friendly, affectionate, and readily accepted people.