Birthday Suits

13: Allison Everett

13: Allison Everett

 

            Belle continued to watch over Hugh, and, surprisingly, so did the rest of her classmates. They didn't understand what her blog post was about, but it did make people more aware of his existence and after a few lunchtimes and disappearances, they quickly came to the conclusion of his disorder. Her peers were looking after him, the same way she was. A surge of pride washed over her.

            However, Belle was coming down with something and she found that her concentration was flickering between irrelevant topics during class, so she decided to take a day off. Sitting in bed with her laptop playing the latest season of her favourite television show, she took one more scoop of cereal and placed the bowl on the desk beside her. Revision questions, pens, and highlighters were scattered across her blanket. Watching a couple of episodes was meant to motivate her to complete her homework; the hilarious remarks from her favourite characters set as background noise as she studied human diseases. But she had gotten distracted and the only thing she had accomplished was rewriting the question of a fresh leaf of paper.

            Quickly pausing the show, she closed the window and opened up her blog. Belle decided to write her daily post. She needed to feel productive and somewhat accomplished, so she set her fingers over her keyboard and started to write.

            She already knew who she was going to write about. Allison Everett.

            Throughout her years of high school, Belle never shared any of her classes with Allison. Due to a hearing impairment, Allison had always been in the support units, with aids to help her comprehensively grasp the contents of the course. Despite everyone's doubts, Allison excelled in her studies and was placed in a mainstream class for her final year.

            Belle found it extremely empowering and she believed everyone would find inspiration in Allison's determination.

            Disabilities do not limit us. Whether they are physical, emotional, or mental, they do not always determine our capabilities. Hard work, determination, and passion can take you further in life beyond imagination. Allison Everett was faced with many expectations, from family, teachers, and peers, but despite what everyone believed she could or couldn't do, she has excelled. Nobody else's expectations matter but our own when it comes to ourselves, and Allison is the perfect example of that. Allison Everett may not think she's beautiful, but I do.