NOTES ON THE GIFTS AND ASSESTS THAT PEOPLE WHO ARE VULNERABLE TO REJECTION COMMONLY BRING TO COMMUNITY
1996
Judith Snow
Hospitality
making people feel happy
listening
providing a home, (to the PA)
Grounding
slow people down,
reorienting people to time and place
helping people appreciate simple things
helping people appreciate their own abilities
Skillbuilding
pushing people to be better problem solvers
causing people to try things they’ve never done before
causing people to research things they never encountered before
Networking
reaching out to people and breaking down barriers
asking questions that everyone else is too shy to ask
bringing people together who otherwise would never meet
Economic
providing jobs to people who want supplmental income, like artists
providing jobs to people who need to work odd schedules like homemakers
providing jobs to people who otherwise have few or no marketable skills
Emotional/Spiritual
often very forgiving
often loving and inspiring love
offering opportunities to do something that clearly makes a difference
reorienting values from successes to relationships
Individuals have unique gifts and they may not have all of the above common gifts. Nevertheless people often privately mention receiving these gifts after getting to know someone labeled disabled. Imagine if we went public about them and intentionally built these gifts into everyday life. Even the Republicans can’t deny the value of these contributions.
