On The Road To Getting An Education

On The Road To Getting An Education:

It’s time for me to go get my low income bus pass for the month of November,
Like a key the bus pass opens doors, connects me to places, and provide me the connection to get out into the community.

It’s the thing that I can use to get out of my personal bubble,

And take classes at the local university.

I’m more than my disability and poverty.
I’m more than what my Assured Income For Severely Handicapped (AISH) worker thinks of me,
I’m a person who wants to make my life better,
So I can participate more out in society.

As a result of my desire,
I been told I can get a degree,
In whatever I want to pursue,
Inside St. Mary’s University.

But in order to do that I must overcome the hurdles first,
Which includes being able to pay for food, rent, and transportation,
Before I can even study any text book, or resource material

Located in the school library.

With the help of the bus pass today,
I was able to stop at the local grocery store to buy some food,

So we won't have rumbling hungry stomachs and headaches,

While I stay home, do homework, and study right under my favorite tree.

As I look on my professor’s instructions,
I see next week I have a book review on the effects of soldiers involved in War,
That I must hand in to the professor if I want to pass the course in History.
In order to learn more about that subject I must use my bus pass to visit the local Calgary Public Library. I can also take the time to start writing my homework on the library computer,  and print it off without worrying about paying a fee.

Today I felt quite ill at school,
Too ill to go directly home you see,
So I decided to take the bus to the  walk in clinic that is along the bus route,
7 km away from my community.

Once home from school, and done homework,
I am free as I can be.
To rest, relax and take my medication,
So I can feel better the next time I explore my community by bus,
And take photos of the birds that are top of all the trees.

On the weekend when I need a break from studying so hard and doing homework, I often feel homesick longing for my family,

That the best thing for me to do is take the bus behind my apartment to the c-train station downtown to take the train than walk to my old family home in NE Calgary. 

So I can hangout with my dogs and parents,

Cherish the moment I have with them, and sear it into my memory.

Thanks to the fact I have a low income bus pass,

I use it like a key,

It unlocks the gates that cause me to feel lonely and isolated.loneliness

So I can actively do things, have fun, be with others I like and love,

I can actual belong into our beautiful society.

Care and Comfort

Care and Comfort:

From the time my brother and I were infants with such small and tiny hands.

Our grandma taught us to be caring and compassionate,

To lend a helping hand.

As we grew into toddlers,

We tried our best to say no and disagree

Yet deep inside within us,

We knew we had been given a gift,

The love of a family.

As we grew and became school age kids,

We had friends who weren’t as lucky as you and me,

They often went to school hungry, and tired,

Poverty was a root of all the problems, that plagued their weary family.

As we grew into our teenage years,

We started to volunteer,

To spend some time, to make some things, to sing some songs with others,

And to spread little cheer.

As we grew into adults,

We never forgot what our grandma taught us to be,

To be kind and caring adults,

Who do the best we can to contribute to our community.

Taking Time To Enjoy The Moment

The little ray of sunshine,

bouncing off the ground,

Gives us light,

and lots of hope,

That good things will happen,

And we'll all be safe and sound.

The little cloud of fluff,

Floating high up in the sky,

Reminds us of  the sweet, delicious cotton candy,

We have eaten throughout our childhood,

At carnivals that past on by.

The little rain drop,

dances on the ground,

cleans up all the things that have hurt us that day,

and helps up calm right down.

The wind gust are whistling,

a soft and soothing tune.

That sounds like Canada's national animal in the distance,

the beautiful swimming  Loon.

The snowflakes glistening against a dark night sky,

Dancing slowly towards the ground,

Looks really special, like something beautiful yet mysterious,

is yearning to be found.

The weather is all around us,

For us to look up and see,

 So lets take a moment

to make an observation of what is going on right in front of us,

and to sear it into our memory.  

We Have The Right To Dream

After listening to a bunch of Disability Action Hall members share their dreams a couple weeks ago, I wrote a poem based on what they said their dreams were. This is how the "We Have The Right To Dream" poem was created.

If you would like to listen to me read the poem in person, check out the Disability Action Hall's  Speak Out 18 event at the ArtBox  (1802 42 St. SE) on Friday June 3 2016.

We Have The Right To Dream
We have the right to dream,
A dream is like a key,
It opens a person’s brain to thoughts and ideas,
And all of life’s different possibilities.

We have the right to dream,
Of interviewing the people we want to see,
Because we want to learn about famous people,

Some like Madonna,
And other’s like Jose Rizal,
So we can decide who we want

To see entertain and influence others in

our international and local society.

We have the right to dream,
 of the all ideal places

We want to go and see,

Like flying on a plane to LA ,

so we can  ride Splash Mountain at  Disneyland,

Or travel to the Chicago Pride parade with friends,

Inside a really cool RV.

We have a right to dream,

We have enough cash to live a life worth living,

Outside of poverty,

A life that is dictated not by dollars and cents,

But by our wants and desires,

A life that gives us the opportunity to be happy and  free.

We have the right to dream,
No one should take that away from you and me,
We have the dream to be called by our individual names,

Not by the numbers given to us by others,

In our society.

We have the right to dream,
Of being in the homes of our choice,
In a community that we feel liked and loved,

Not stuck away like a prisoner in an

Unfamiliar area,

Looking at the doves.

We have the right to dream,
To be all that we want to be,
Lets celebrate the right to dream,

Because afterall we are lucky to be human beings

like everyone else, Who is free to live in this society.

My Backpack Of Life Lessons

My Backpack of Life Lessons

As I fill my backpack  the night before  my first day of school,

I start to think and wonder what I should fill it with,
So I look like I am  really cool.

As I start to fill it,
I start to realize,
It’s OK to fill it with unique and crazy things,
That look beautiful only to my eyes.

I start by putting in a photo of a beaver,
One that lives in the park as my neighbor right beside me,
Because I have learned from  watching him build his house

If I want a better life I got to work hard, be creative,
And have a lot of  tenacity.

I then decide to put in a photo of a hawk,

That is searching high above  the ground for food,
As high as he can be,
Because he reminds me that  I got to search for knowledge and wisdom,
Without being scared by the weird and crazy things that I hear and see.

I chose to put a photo of a baby deer in my backpack for me to look back and see,
Because I want to remember,
That even in times of devastation and turmoil.
I got to be patient so I can see the beauty that is hiding in between the trees.

I chose to put a  photo of a chipmunk  in my backpack for  me to look back and  see,
Because that  chipmunk  had just chucked an acorn at a person as to way to protect himself,

just like I got to remember I need to  stop the bullies from hurting me.

I chose to put a photo of my garden in my backpack for me  to look back and  see,
Because love makes a garden and a relationship  grow strong and beautiful,
Love for myself, my family, and friends is something I strive to achieve.
It’s something very important to me.

A Place Called Home

A Place Called Home…
By Mary Salvani

My home is place where  I can rest  my  tired feet and body,

At the end of a long, exhausting day.
My home is a place where can friends and I can gather together,

a place where people feel free and welcome to eat and stay.

My  home is a place where I can read  and hang out,
It’s a place where  my friends and I want to be.
In fact one of only a handful of places,
Where I am not scared  of  being  ridiculed for doing something others see as weird or crazy,
It’s a place where I  feel  free to be me.

When you enter my home without my consent,
You’re disrespecting me.
It makes me feel like you are not allowing me
To be all the things I can and want to be.
When you check my toothpaste, towels, and toothbrush
without my consent,
You’re telling me,

You don’t trust my ability to become  an independent  happy and healthy person,

Who deserves to live  freely in this society.

What Makes My Place My Home

What Makes My Place My Home

The floors squeaks, the door is cracked,

the windows are slightly ajar,

To me, my place look quite unique,

When I look at it from a far.

There is four walls as you can see,

that protect me from the rain, wind, and cold,

Because my place is relatively new
I don’t think it has any mold.

Now I have told you about my place,
I will tell you what makes my place my home.

My place  is more than just a building,
It’s a home  where I feel safe,

As safe as I can be,

To hang out  on my own,

Or to have a meal

with my  friends and family,

My place is part of  a group of buildings,

Within a community,

Where I  can do some gardening with my friends,

or go fishing,

Or even take photos of wild animals,

playing in the trees.

What makes my place my home,
Is much more than you can see,
What makes my place my home,

Is that  I can let my guard down to relax
without fear of being hurt or scared. .
I am  finally free to be me.