The name came from my family because they liken me and my life to peeling away the layers to find the essential me. My education has been like a huge disaster. My early memory is of this pompous doctor telling my mother I had severe learning difficulties. See they equate speech difficulties with poor cognitive ability. I wanted to say to him that he was wrong but I didn’t have the speech. that diagnosis stuck with me for years at least through my early education. Needless to say the education was poorly done – actually I had no education at that time.
Thankfully my grandma has several degrees in education and has great tenacity. We had to sue them but unfortunately the ‘special’ school I got another poor example of education. That was possibly the worst time in my life and I was bullied. I was beaten up twice by some big thug. I think they saw I was different. Super gran was hated there but she stuck it and finally my mother gave notice to remove me. I kind of felt things had to get better and it did. My family put together a programme which is funded. I’m finally learning to talk but not in the U.K. My grandmother found specialist speech therapists in USA. It is a real hardship to go to Nevada for 3 weeks every year for speech therapy and integrated OT. I would move to Nevada tomorrow for the heat, then the lifestyle that goes with it. I’m learning to use a DJ Controller with one of the best DJs in Las Vegas. Also drumming although lack of motor planning hinders that. So that’s me the ‘essential onion’ – damaged by the education system but finding out who I am.
I hope to introduce you to my family over time but will not name them. Super gran works for a public body, let’s just call it “O’ and I know all you teachers out there love them. She is a good one though very bright and real skills to help me. Grandad was also a teacher and he is my teacher in the programme. I have a specialist team who work with me and grandma oversees the programme. So I’ve got to work hard which is not always easy – come on I am a teenager. Academically I am doing well and my writing has improved so much.
anyway that’s all for the first post.
essentialonion 