Thank You!

Earlier this week I had the good fortune to spend a day with a young person who , though he has had to deal with lots of issues, is still good company. The young man in question has autism, which means he sees life through a unique pair of eyes.

He wanted to go to Wakefield in West Yorkshire to visit the Waterton collection in the local museum. Charles Waterton is credited as being the first naturalist. He collected animals from all around the world and brought them back intact to Britain. One of the famous stories about him is that all the collections of snakes here in Britain had wooden heads at this time because people decapitated them for safety while collecting them. Waterton wanted to change this and show animals as they were in the wild. One day while out walking in the jungle, Waterton found a large python and is supposed to have punched it in the face! When the poor creature came round, it coiled itself around our intrepid explorer, who then calmly walked back to camp with the creature intact. Who ever first told that story had no idea how a python kills its prey. Every time Waterton took a breath The snake would have tightened its grip until it would have been impossible for him to breathe. But what ever the truth was, the young man I was with wanted to see this snake in the museum, though it is now very dead and very stuffed!

So we set off on a bus together and he happily chatted as the bus slowly manoeuvred itself on what seemed a never ending journey. As we trundled along, I noticed a person I hadn't seen in a long time. This man was at school with me and, unlike lots of other people I have written about before who attended my school, this man is quite successful. He owns a very busy and, I would imagine, profitable business. But as he walked past the tediously-slow bus, I couldn't help but notice just how he had physically changed since our school days together. He had taken on board excessive timber and was now quite portly, plus his hair, though suspiciously jet black, now had a large "helicopter pad" on the back (bald patch). He wore a suit that screamed money and which needed to be let out by a good tailor, and to round up his new look he had a pair of small spectacles precariously balanced on the end of his nose. I had to smile, because he was regarded as a good catch when he was younger, as he was good looking and slim and his father had a successful business. I suppose now he still would be regarded as a good catch by some, and he seemed happy enough and is 'financially viable'.

As he rushed on I caught a glimpse of myself reflected back at me in the window, I noticed that the years of abuse have also taken their toll on my face, As my young companion carried on chatting away I couldn't help but think of the line from the song 'Once in a Lifetime' by the 'Talking Heads' “How did I get here?”

My life, like everyone else's life, has been a mixture of highs and lows. I have worked hard to make sure the highs far outweigh the lows. I thought about those I have met recently who have trodden different paths to me and paid a heavy price. I looked at my travelling companion, who had little or no say in his life, and who found it hard to make sense of what the world around him was doing (just like a lot of us I suppose). I thought about all the times in my life that I have been rejected for whatever reason, whether it was for a job, love or life, and I started to feel so happy.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who have rejected me in the past; all the employers, women, directors, editors, thank you all! This is not a sneer at any of them, as their rejection has led me to where I am now in life, which is in a very good place. I have everything I need, family and friends. I can choose what work I wish to do and who I wish to spend my time with. I can afford my bills (for the moment) and I live a good life. If I had been successful in any other way my life may have been so different, so thank you to all those who couldn't see what others could see in me.