The awful accident that led to Florence Losing her left leg at the age of 8 was one she would never wish in her enemy.
A normal school day turned into a nightmare when a trailer driver lost control and crashed into their school bus killing most of her mates and the bus driver she was among the lucky few who survived but not without a reminder of the incident.
The scars that the incident left on her were not only physical but mental as well, For the first 3 years there was never a night she didn’t have nightmares about that day and that led to her developing a phobia for moving vehicles.
Adapting to life with her disability wasn’t a smooth ride, she had to go from being self-sufficient to depending on her mum for most needs especially her mobility.
Spending months in the hospital and hearing the whispers of people wondering if this was the end of life for her contributed to her depression which kept her withdrawn and with no Zeal for life.
Now at 16 and having spent time with multiple therapists, looking at how much better she was doing in life, Florence had come to the realization that life didn’t kick her down, but rather she was given the opportunity to be differently able, and her disability had not been the end of her life or her dreams but her only limitation as her mind.
December 3rd is marked as International Day of Persons with Disability, a day set aside to honor those who despite their disability have made enormous strides in their lives and have motivated others to do so.
Disability is not a death sentence, it is an opportunity to show up differently in life.
Today Lema Plan International celebrates the disabled ones and appreciates every person who in one way or another is ensuring that they live full lives by providing them with much-needed amenities and tools.