When the world falls down like the rain..

"… I wonder
if I will ever find a language
to speak of the things
that haunt me the most."

- Bao Phi, from “Vocabulary,” Thousand Star Hotel
(via wordsthat-speak)

(Source: amazon.com, via selfishgirl)

No, It’s Not “In Spite Of” Anything…

beeth0ven:

I absolutely hate when people say “so and so did x in spite of their disability” or “so and so overcame their disability and did x.” Because really, that’s not how it works. Disability and illness shapes a person and their experiences. Most of the time, it’s not “in spite of” our disabilities, it’s because of them.

Let’s look at some historical examples, shall we?

Take FDR. He was a wealthy, pompous playboy from a political dynasty who Gatsby-ed his way through the Roaring 20s without ever experiencing the real world. He didn’t become president in spite of having polio, he became president because of it. At a time of national hopelessness and desperation, his polio put him into the real world- into a place of understanding for the common man affected by The Depression. It humanized him and it got him 4 terms. It inspired the March of Dimes which consequently ended up funding Salk’s vaccine. That’s not “in spite of,” that’s because of.

Beethoven did not make music in spite of being deaf. In fact, he revolutionized Romantic music because of his distinct lack of high notes. His symphonies, especially his later works, are all much lower than what was common at the time, and it was all because he couldn’t hear high-pitched sounds.

Frida Kahlo did not blur the lines between Expressionism and Surrealism in spite of being disabled, she did it because she was bedridden and bored. Because she was in pain and she was shunned. In the same way her relationship with Diego Rivera inspired her works, so did being disabled. She didn’t overcome anything expect societies limitations.

The truth is, disability and illness are integral parts of our identities and they do shape our lives. The worlds we build and create are not made by overcoming the hindrance of disability, they are made because of the perspective it gives up. 

Erase the idea of in spite of. Erase the idea that our success comes from overcoming anything other than deep-seeded ableism. 

(via annieelainey)

"You are not a burden. You are not too much to handle. You do not come with too much baggage. You are not only your 3AM mind, your pacing around your room, your doubt, your fears, or your mistakes."

- Emily Rella, “Learning to Accept Love for Yourself” (via twloha)

"The beauty you see in me is a reflection of you."

- Rumi
(via abiding-in-peace)

(via stillglamorus)

"You reminded me of rain when I first met you, like when I look through a window after not having looked at it all day, only to find out that it has been raining all along, and I stare longingly with halcyon feelings I once felt before and every feeling I hope to feel after realizing you."

- raindrops, Jenn Satsune (via ohsatsune)

(via zodiacsociety)

"Everything interests me, but nothing holds me."

- Fernando Pessoa, The Book of Disquiet (via daisy59)

(via hhfhhhggdhf-deactivated20160527)

"I look at you, and I just love you, and it terrifies me. It terrifies me what I would do for you."

- Liam Stewart (Alexandra Bracken, Never Fade)

(via laur-a)