The Cardinal Cushing Centers in Hanover, Massachusetts "provides individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disabilities of all ages opportunities to discover the benefits of a supportive and vibrant community." I have passed the campus hundreds of times, located as it is on Route 53, a major north/south route through the South Shore of Massachusetts. Always noting as I passed the small, sweet chapel near the entrance to the grounds.
I have known of a few people who have attended Cardinal Cushing, in particular the young man who died suddenly last week. (See previous post.) Yesterday was the first time, though, that I had been invited to participate in the activities at the Center. It was a profoundly moving experience for me.
My graduate, the one I had come to support, is the daughter of a cousin. Both mother and daughter have worked very hard to reach yesterday's milestone and I am overwhelmed by the strength each of them display. That strength of character, of will, of determination was apparent in many of the graduates and family members in attendance.
A ceremony marking the end of a period of education, a commencement, usually means a beginning. The commencing of "real life" for most of us is a time of anticipation and joy. As I sat in the auditorium I was thinking about the variety of these ceremonies I had attended and the kind of happiness that other graduates feel as they say goodbye to their educational institutions. Most of us cannot wait for the rest of our lives to begin. And some of the Cardinal Cushing graduates were feeling that way, too. Here, I editorialize. I don't know what most of them were feeling but I know what I was feeling on their behalf...trepidation. Most of these students are graduating, not because they have achieved a measured standard goal, although some of them have, having passed the MCAS standardized test. They must matriculate because they are reaching a different standard, that of chronological age.
 |
| Photo: Gary Higgins-Patriot/Ledger |
In Massachusetts, the Commonwealth provides educational services to all its residents up to the age of 18, up to 22 if there is an assessment of disability. So this most lively, happy group have reached the age where they must move into adult services. A few of this group will be able to live in a group situation and many have received job skills training so will be somewhat self-supporting. But all of them will need some level of care and support throughout their lives. This is not to say that the members of this group are not functional. One or two are born politicians and will probably have higher profile jobs. Several are gifted with humor and have the ability to intentionally make others laugh. One young man introduced himself with a self-assurance, firm handshake and genuine smile that I sometimes lack. Making the acquaintance of these new graduates changes my perspective on personal growth and social development.
There was one young woman whose response to the entire ceremony broke my heart. She wept aloud, her face contorted in a psychic pain that I can only imagine, her sobs diminished only she hid her face in her partner's shoulder. She embodied the kind of fear that I had been feeling for all these graduates. The world can be a harsh, dangerous, insensitive environment for all of us. These graduates have been taught and been shielded and now they face more daunting challenges than most people I know. There was a moment when I recognized that Kimmy was expressing what I, too, probably felt inside when I graduated from high school. Much as I wanted to get away from home and from that place, I had a feeling that it might be safer to just stay where I was. "Better the Devil you know." It's a caption for living, though, that we accomplish very little that doesn't involve some level of fear.
I have as much hope as I do fear, for there are wonderful, intelligent and supportive people who devote their lives to helping guide others along the treacherous path. I witnessed incredible sensitivity yesterday among the teachers, aides, partners and staff at the Center. The program was altered a few times because of the uniqueness of the participants, some of whom had their own private goals and ideals for the day. Perfectly illustrating the diversity of the graduates was the commencement address by Tony Clarkson, Hanover Town Manager, who skillfully encouraged all of us who might be "different" to reach beyond our perceived, socially preconceived boundaries, to be exactly who we are and to use our unique abilities to touch the sky.
Upon hearing someone being interviewed on the radio state that allowing gays to marry will destroy legitimate marriage, she asks "Do you think gay marriage is a threat to your marriage? Our marriage?"
