Compassion, Dignity, and Gratitude

"We can’t let the House Republicans dismantle Social Security inch by inch." - U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren

This five minute video scared the hell out of me. I'm very upset, and very anxious. My breathing is shallow, my heart rate is up. I'm having trouble typing.

Every day I feel such profound gratitude for my home. With my limited mobility, the rooms are easy to navigate, and the bathroom is big enough for me to maneuver in. Plus it's such a beautiful, old farmhouse. All my wife ever wanted was to have a house in the country where her grandchildren could run around.

Barely a year after we bought the house in September of 2006 I started experiencing the first symptoms of what would quickly lead to total paralysis from the waist down.

I was too out of it to be any help, in fact, my physical and other needs were a horrible burden. Somehow my wife was able to hold things together, under incredible strain, including a major outdoor plumbing crisis while I was at Loyola for spinal cord surgery.

It was she who went through the nightmarish Social Security Disability application process. Everyone told us we'd probably be denied on the first try and need to appeal. I firmly believed it was a waste of effort, but she stuck with it as we scrambled day by day, month by month, to eat and pay the mortgage.

We struggled on for six months, by which time we were eating crumbs, and begging the bank for one more extension. My wife was commuting to work each day, and my son was taking care of me, a full time job in itself.

Then I received a letter. Starting the next month I would receive a check. It was barely 25% of what I was earning when we bought the house, but it was just enough to pay our bills. And since that time, we have managed, by the skin of our teeth, to stay here, where we get to decorate for the holidays and watch the grandkids run around.

I and my family are so thankful we have a nation that has such social safety programs in place. We fully understand where the money comes from.

All I want to point out is that these programs affect real people. We are families who have worked hard, and continue to work hard.

This truly is a society that believes all people are created equal. A country founded on dignity and compassion.

It is because of that compassion I get to live my life with dignity.

https://www.facebook.com/senatorelizabethwarren/videos/487878791374619/?pnref=story