You don’t need full ‘vision’ to have a ‘vision’ to ‘see’ your way through life.
~Elaine Huitt
When I interviewed Elaine Huitt for her Women On The Move piece I was moved by her entire story. However, the above personal quote that she shared at the end of the interview was a particularly powerful statement.
As a society, we are so consumed with how things are presented, many times we miss more meaningful messages. Pretty packaging, bells, and whistles can be a distraction for what really lies beneath. Conversely, packaging without the glitter and glam might appear ordinary until you unpack what’s wrapped inside.
Elaine, like many of us who live with disabilities, overcompensated and worked extremely hard to keep up in school and on the job. She did whatever she had to do to be successful which meant developing creative workarounds.
Viewing people with disabilities as broken is a “we vs. them” mentality that comes from a place of superiority. Not only is this thinking unkind and divisive it sometimes and makes inaccurate assumptions. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses yet when we talk about people with disabilities all we can see is their difference.
Maybe one of the reasons our planet is so diverse is we all bring something unique to our world. Together we are like a beautifully designed masterpiece that was meant to be as it is.
Despite everything working against her, Elaine was able to move up the ranks and become a huge success. In her current role, she helps youth understand that lack of physical sight has little to no impact on their inner vision. So many more just like her are waiting to make their mark, the question is, will we give them a chance?
Image Descriptions:
Featured image – A headshot of Elaine wearing a crisp white shirt paired with a silver statement necklace. She has wavy dark hair, with on-point makeup that includes pink lip color.