A BYU EXPERIENCE

Dealing with mentally/physically handicapped people is not my forte. I feel awkward dealing with people who cant communicate and do strange things like crawl around for no reason and stay focued on 1 topic for hours. It's just really hard for me to be patient with them. So, in efforts to improve my skills and appreciation for those with disabilities, I volunteered for BYU Experience. It is a 2 day program where college age poeple in Utah county come to BYU and experience what it would be like as a student here. I think I take for granted what an incredible opportunity I have to learn here and grow from the countless incredible opportunities that can be mine. It's easy to get caught up in the things going wrong or get tired of doing schoolwork in general. I hope I can remember the things I learned from those with disabilities this past week during this upcoming semester. They would give EVERYTHING to be part of BYU, or even just be able to retain information. I learned so much about down syndrome people, and about myself as a volunteer for BYU Experience.



I was so grateful to finally have a reason to use the handicapped door opening button! It was really useful while I was pushing Chris... I can only imagine how hard it would be to run ahead, get the door, hold it open, and probably still crush his legs in the process of going through a door. At first I though Chris didn't/couldn't talk, but then, suddenly he announced to me, "Stefanie, if I weren't in a wheelchair, I'd be a gangster!" Chris talking was a surprise, not to mention about being a gangster. He showed me how to peace out and did a little rap for me :) He was a lot of fun!



Angie was hands down my favorite!!! She was SUCH a cool girl! I have never seen anyone so excited about taking notes and studying a text book! Angie has been looking forward to BYU experience for a few months now- and was most anxious for the chemistry show. She brought her "notes" to class and was ready to learn. She really could answer all the teacher's questions and is totally on top of "solids, liquids and gasses." Her notes were actually pretty good. The chemistry show was so much fun. We went into a classroom and a professor showed us several cool experiements that involved growing instant foam, creating a glowing liquid, popping balloons with fire, and crushing strong cans with pressure. Angie and I held hands the entire day and she costantly hugged me and thanked me for being her friend and loving her. She was so sincere every time she told me something to the effect of: "You are so much fun Stefanie- I love to walk with you and talk with you. Thanks for being nice to me and for helping me. I love you." And the crazy part is that I really did grow to love her in just a few minutes!