What if you happened to be a Very Famous Couple, like Prince William and Kate Middleton?
What if things didn't go as expected?
What if your baby were born with a birth defect? Or Down syndrome? Or a visual impairment?
What if your baby ended up with cerebral palsy? Or autism?
What if you were at first crushed, but came to realize that even though you didn't get the child you imagined you still got a beautiful child?
What if William and Kate issued a press release about how thrilled they were with their wonderful baby, a baby who had special needs?
What if they helped people see how perfect a so-called imperfect baby can be?
What if people swarmed to buy the commemorative t-shirts and dish towels imprinted with photos of that royal beautiful baby with special needs?
What if William and Kate showed the world that having a child with special needs is not a tragedy?
What if they could influence people to stop treating children with special needs like lesser human beings?
What if this isn't about schadenfreude—no, not at all, not even a little bit. What if this is simply about the fantastical thoughts that go through your head when you are mom to a child who was born with special needs and you are considering the pregnancy of a woman people worship. What if this is about wondering (constantly so, achingly so) what it would take for people to get that kids with special need should be seen as kids, not fragile creatures to be mourned or pitied. That our children have plenty of abilities, not to mention potential. That our children are as beloved as any others. That our children are as beautiful as any others.
What if?
Image: Flickr/tsaiproject
