One Leg
07-12-2006, 05:30
Greetings:
It seems like forever and a day since I've posted anything on here, and thought I'd give you guys an unsolicited update as to what's been going on in my life.
Some of you knew that from January - April, I was shacking up with LilRedMg and her husband while I was attending college in Nashville. I really enjoyed the time I spent with them, but being the family-oriented person that I am, I really couldn't stand the temporary separation from my wife and kids. When the semester ended, I opted not to return. Instead, I've been attending Walter State College in neighboring Morristown getting my core classes out of the way, and will enter the Jefferson State Community College (Birmingham) online course, enabling me to remain with my family while pursuing higher education.
Being back in East Tennessee has also allowed me to pursue my second nature: hiking. Aside from re-doing the Fontana Dam - Davenport Gap section, I've also been hiking on the Daniel Boone Trail in Ky. & Virginia. Once completed, it's supposed to "T" into the A.T. It's really an awesome trail.
All of our children are doing really great. Tyler (M&M) recently obtained his learners license, and hogs the drivers seat each time we have to go anywhere. We incessantly tease him about "pimping the family minivan", and have threatened to get some of those horrid spinner hubcaps just to embarrass him. He's really grown and matured into a fine young man. He's gotten himself a couple of mowing contracts, and stays busy making sure that his work is impeccable.
Hannah is now babysitting on a fulltime basis for 8 month & 21 month old siblings. Cheyenne & Thomas (the siblings) have a sad story behind them, and the long and short of it is that they are in our home more than they're in their own. Hannah's really done well with them, and the difference has shown in their lives.
Casey (Cricket) just turned 12, but is still the same innocent young girl that you may remember. She has such a joy and radiance about her that you can't help but to smile when you're around her. It's difficult to believe that my baby girl is going to be a teenager in just a year.
Caleb (Middleman) is 8, and loves working alongside me at whatever I happen to be doing. He's really grown to love doing outdoor yard work, and beams about the fact that he has his own weed eater and mower. (I just hope that excitement lasts through his teenage years, and that he still enjoys mowing the yard then.) He and I go fishing together at least once every 2 weeks, and we're working on his small boat, appropriately named "Middle-Man". He gets really irritated that he can't accompany me on my mail route.
Jacob, 5, is developing a strong love for hiking. He, literally, begs me to take him hiking. We're leaving later today to hike some in Kentucky, and will overnight for the first time. He's sooooooooo excited.
Elijah, 3, is a total handful by himself. His middle name is Zachary, making his initials "E.Z."..... He is anything but EZ... We're trying to channel all of that energy into a positive direction, and are making small, but sure progress.
Josiah, our "trail baby" (conceived on the A.T.), just turned 16 months old. He's as big as a thanksgiving turkey, and recently discovered that he has ultimate power just by closing his mouth tightly...On various portions of other folks' bodies. He's a biter, and seems to take great pride in the fact that he can make someone else cry out in pain. We're praying that he grows out of that VERY soon.
Leisa (Wonder Woman) is doing really good. We recently had a scare where we thought that she might lose her right eye. She was sitting in our living room holding Elijah, when another child attempted to take away his sucker that he'd been holding. Instinctively, he snatched his hand back. The sucker stick impaled her eyeball. Thankfully, the damage was minimal. She did suffer some vision loss, and will require glasses, but it could've been a lot worse. We recently celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary, and I'm so very proud of her for standing by me through thick and thin. She's the best wife a guy could have, and I love her so much.
We're also in the process of adding to our family again. We've been taking P.A.T.H. classes for 7 weeks in preparation for adopting a 4 year old boy named Jeff. He suffers from Waardenburg Syndrome, a birth defect characterized by deafness and mobility impairments. We learned about him through a mutual friend, and immediately fell in love with him. We're looking forward to bringing him home and welcoming him into our family. We hope to have him here by Christmas.
A lot of folks have asked us why we're adopting when we already have so many kids of our own, and I'm sure some of you are probably wondering that too. I'll explain:
When Leisa and I married, she was a Special Education teacher. Aside from providing her with a good paycheck, I never really gave much thought to the kids that she taught. I did my thing, she did hers.
When I became "disabled" in 1998, my eyes were opened in a whole new way. I realized that I really wasn't all that different from the kids that she taught. Then, I got to thinking about suffering, and what it really meant. Oh, I thought that I'd suffered, but had I really??
Leisa and I had talked for years about the possibility of one day adopting more children, but it was always just talk. When I got to thinking about disabled kids and suffering, it really amazed me at the vast number of adoptable children out there who are 'undesirable' just because they don't have 10 fingers, 10 toes, aren't able to hear you say "I love you" or couldn't reciprocate the love held for them.
They were plucked from the only home they knew, removed from the only safety and security known to them, and placed in various foster homes for whatever reason. I've since learned that, -SOME of the children-even if their home life was a bad one, that they still found safety and security in their surroundings. Some were removed from the home for neglect, abuse, or parents relinquished their parental rights because they were simply unable to cope, deal with, or emotionally handle a disabled child. The latter category is where Jeff falls.
So, here's little Jeff, removed from his home through absolutely no fault of his own. The only safety and security he's ever known is gone. He's bounced from one foster home to another and really has no security in knowing where he'll be next week. Couple that with the fact that he can't hear or walk, and I believe that is a very true form of suffering. (Granted, he isn't in agonizing physical pain, he still suffers emotionally.)
When I started to think about suffering from that point of view, it really made me feel pathetic to even think that I'd even remotely suffered. Oh, my lifestyle was drastically altered, my little world that I'd created was different, but I really hadn't suffered at all. I still had my family, and that was what mattered most.
So, with room in our hearts, and room in our home, we're going through the process to make Jeff a member of our family. And what's so weird about all of this is the fact that we have 100% agreement within our home about Jeff. There isn't a one among us who harbors opposition about bringing him in. I can't wait to introduce him to you. You'll love him as much as we do.
I guess that about brings you up to speed with us. I've missed you all, and look forward to once again reconnecting with you.
Thanks for letting me share....
Scott "One-Leg" Rogers
It seems like forever and a day since I've posted anything on here, and thought I'd give you guys an unsolicited update as to what's been going on in my life.
Some of you knew that from January - April, I was shacking up with LilRedMg and her husband while I was attending college in Nashville. I really enjoyed the time I spent with them, but being the family-oriented person that I am, I really couldn't stand the temporary separation from my wife and kids. When the semester ended, I opted not to return. Instead, I've been attending Walter State College in neighboring Morristown getting my core classes out of the way, and will enter the Jefferson State Community College (Birmingham) online course, enabling me to remain with my family while pursuing higher education.
Being back in East Tennessee has also allowed me to pursue my second nature: hiking. Aside from re-doing the Fontana Dam - Davenport Gap section, I've also been hiking on the Daniel Boone Trail in Ky. & Virginia. Once completed, it's supposed to "T" into the A.T. It's really an awesome trail.
All of our children are doing really great. Tyler (M&M) recently obtained his learners license, and hogs the drivers seat each time we have to go anywhere. We incessantly tease him about "pimping the family minivan", and have threatened to get some of those horrid spinner hubcaps just to embarrass him. He's really grown and matured into a fine young man. He's gotten himself a couple of mowing contracts, and stays busy making sure that his work is impeccable.
Hannah is now babysitting on a fulltime basis for 8 month & 21 month old siblings. Cheyenne & Thomas (the siblings) have a sad story behind them, and the long and short of it is that they are in our home more than they're in their own. Hannah's really done well with them, and the difference has shown in their lives.
Casey (Cricket) just turned 12, but is still the same innocent young girl that you may remember. She has such a joy and radiance about her that you can't help but to smile when you're around her. It's difficult to believe that my baby girl is going to be a teenager in just a year.
Caleb (Middleman) is 8, and loves working alongside me at whatever I happen to be doing. He's really grown to love doing outdoor yard work, and beams about the fact that he has his own weed eater and mower. (I just hope that excitement lasts through his teenage years, and that he still enjoys mowing the yard then.) He and I go fishing together at least once every 2 weeks, and we're working on his small boat, appropriately named "Middle-Man". He gets really irritated that he can't accompany me on my mail route.
Jacob, 5, is developing a strong love for hiking. He, literally, begs me to take him hiking. We're leaving later today to hike some in Kentucky, and will overnight for the first time. He's sooooooooo excited.
Elijah, 3, is a total handful by himself. His middle name is Zachary, making his initials "E.Z."..... He is anything but EZ... We're trying to channel all of that energy into a positive direction, and are making small, but sure progress.
Josiah, our "trail baby" (conceived on the A.T.), just turned 16 months old. He's as big as a thanksgiving turkey, and recently discovered that he has ultimate power just by closing his mouth tightly...On various portions of other folks' bodies. He's a biter, and seems to take great pride in the fact that he can make someone else cry out in pain. We're praying that he grows out of that VERY soon.
Leisa (Wonder Woman) is doing really good. We recently had a scare where we thought that she might lose her right eye. She was sitting in our living room holding Elijah, when another child attempted to take away his sucker that he'd been holding. Instinctively, he snatched his hand back. The sucker stick impaled her eyeball. Thankfully, the damage was minimal. She did suffer some vision loss, and will require glasses, but it could've been a lot worse. We recently celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary, and I'm so very proud of her for standing by me through thick and thin. She's the best wife a guy could have, and I love her so much.
We're also in the process of adding to our family again. We've been taking P.A.T.H. classes for 7 weeks in preparation for adopting a 4 year old boy named Jeff. He suffers from Waardenburg Syndrome, a birth defect characterized by deafness and mobility impairments. We learned about him through a mutual friend, and immediately fell in love with him. We're looking forward to bringing him home and welcoming him into our family. We hope to have him here by Christmas.
A lot of folks have asked us why we're adopting when we already have so many kids of our own, and I'm sure some of you are probably wondering that too. I'll explain:
When Leisa and I married, she was a Special Education teacher. Aside from providing her with a good paycheck, I never really gave much thought to the kids that she taught. I did my thing, she did hers.
When I became "disabled" in 1998, my eyes were opened in a whole new way. I realized that I really wasn't all that different from the kids that she taught. Then, I got to thinking about suffering, and what it really meant. Oh, I thought that I'd suffered, but had I really??
Leisa and I had talked for years about the possibility of one day adopting more children, but it was always just talk. When I got to thinking about disabled kids and suffering, it really amazed me at the vast number of adoptable children out there who are 'undesirable' just because they don't have 10 fingers, 10 toes, aren't able to hear you say "I love you" or couldn't reciprocate the love held for them.
They were plucked from the only home they knew, removed from the only safety and security known to them, and placed in various foster homes for whatever reason. I've since learned that, -SOME of the children-even if their home life was a bad one, that they still found safety and security in their surroundings. Some were removed from the home for neglect, abuse, or parents relinquished their parental rights because they were simply unable to cope, deal with, or emotionally handle a disabled child. The latter category is where Jeff falls.
So, here's little Jeff, removed from his home through absolutely no fault of his own. The only safety and security he's ever known is gone. He's bounced from one foster home to another and really has no security in knowing where he'll be next week. Couple that with the fact that he can't hear or walk, and I believe that is a very true form of suffering. (Granted, he isn't in agonizing physical pain, he still suffers emotionally.)
When I started to think about suffering from that point of view, it really made me feel pathetic to even think that I'd even remotely suffered. Oh, my lifestyle was drastically altered, my little world that I'd created was different, but I really hadn't suffered at all. I still had my family, and that was what mattered most.
So, with room in our hearts, and room in our home, we're going through the process to make Jeff a member of our family. And what's so weird about all of this is the fact that we have 100% agreement within our home about Jeff. There isn't a one among us who harbors opposition about bringing him in. I can't wait to introduce him to you. You'll love him as much as we do.
I guess that about brings you up to speed with us. I've missed you all, and look forward to once again reconnecting with you.
Thanks for letting me share....
Scott "One-Leg" Rogers