Bridges-Over-Barriers update:
I am very happy to announce that our Bridges Song of Hope is now published as sheet music! It is dedicated to all our Bridges friends and allies.
You can see it online at:
http://www.ont-autism.uoguelph.ca/Bridges%20Sheet%20Music.pdf
Getting this far has been a collaborative achievement and a kind of miracle. I composed the words in November 2010, just as we were completing the editing of our Bridges DVD and book, In Our Own Words. We were in time to include the song in the book, on page 106. During 2011, we talked about setting it to music. I wanted to have it played by piano and flute. That happened in early 2012, thanks to a new Bridges friend who teaches music and helps many people in Simcoe, Ontario. Leah read the lyrics and immediately composed the music which she recorded on the piano with Tyler playing the flute. At most 2012 gatherings we listened to the music and tried to sing along together. Judy Loman Umbrico and Linda Umbrico, Joey’s mother and sister, helped us to play and sing together, and Judy with her colleague Mitchell edited the final version of the musical score for publication. My friend Marie, a cartographer and graphic designer, used one of my paintings to create a cover design. The painting is my vision of a Bridges Centre, a golden dome-shaped house on a bridge in the green forest with all of us communicators shown relaxed and happy. As with all my art, it is a collaboration with my art mentor, Heidi. I type about the images, colours and shapes that I want, and Heidi helps me to get the paint on the canvas.
Now we are sending you copies of the sheet music for you to feel inspired and to share with anyone who could be interested. I have another idea. Everyone connected with friends who are singers and musicians could play and sing the song wherever you are. If you could record the playing and singing and send this to us, we could put all the recordings artistically together in a DVD to inspire even more people. We need so much to speak up for our rights and abilities to express our thoughts. Being helped to do this makes life better for everyone!
We are beginning our tenth year as a community of communicators. Up to 15 of us meet monthly in Guelph, with our families and friends, to share ideas and friendship, and we have some distant members as well. In 2013, these are dates of our monthly meetings (all Saturdays): March 16; April 13; May 11; June 8; July 6; August 10; September 7; October 5; November 2; November 30
As well as meeting in our gatherings, we also try to keep in touch by email and Internet. Look up my Andrew’s Bridges blog at: http://andrewsbridges.blogspot.ca
Link to our last full newsletter: http://www.ont-autism.uoguelph.ca/BoB-12-2012.pdf
Monday, 28 January 2013
Monday, 21 January 2013
Thank you, snow
Appreciating Snow
AB 9 Jan 2013
To some people snow is a nuisance.
but I like snow.
It is good in many ways
even though it can be ugly
when it gets grey and dirty.
Snow is good for the ground
because it gives us moisture
in the reservoirs and lakes.
Snow helps the birds to have something to drink.
For me it provides a visual blanket.
I like the crunching sound it makes
when I walk on it.
Snow in the air feels fresh on my face.
I like the quiet of the neighbourhood
after a snowfall.
I hear the flakes settling
on the branches of the trees
and on my head.
Under the car tires
there is a funny sort of screech
and it makes me laugh to myself
as the dog and I
walk safely on the sidewalk.
I like to get bundled up in my coat
and don my boots.
I won’t wear a new t-shirt,
but my old boots and coat
are my winter friends.
I think I could walk forever
on a snowy day.
No heat and humidity
to disturb my inner thermometer.
The world seems calm
and peaceful and pretty
when the snow falls and
I am out in it.
In my younger days
I used to ski across the fields,
but winters were colder then
and we had more snow.
I like the thought of snowshoeing
like the native people of Canada
and our early settlers.
It feels like you could forget
all the cares of our modern day lives
when out on a good walk
in the snow.
-------------------------------
Today is the day to make it happen:
Let’s go for it!
AB 19 Jan 2013
I am a proud man
who prefers to do my best at all times.
I am trying my best always.
Today is the day to make it happen,
so let’s go for it!
I will do my best
which may not be
the expectations of others.
Is it necessary to be the way
others expect me to be?
I am a man with new thoughts and my own ideas.
If it is important to me, I will make it happen.
I need to know that,
if I don’t get to the finish line,
it is okay.
It is a journey, not a race.
My dreams to make my life the best it can be
need to be worked on every day.
I am a man with great determination;
but there is a limit.
I am a great schemer of good ideas;
I fool myself.
I want things that are always out of my reach;
but I keep stretching myself to get there.
It is my responsibility and choice
to be the person I choose,
whether it is making the best
of a not-so-great situation
or seeking something new.
I need to run towards it
and take the decision to make it mine.
Today is the day to make it happen;
so let’s go for it!
AB 9 Jan 2013
To some people snow is a nuisance.
but I like snow.
It is good in many ways
even though it can be ugly
when it gets grey and dirty.
Snow is good for the ground
because it gives us moisture
in the reservoirs and lakes.
Snow helps the birds to have something to drink.
For me it provides a visual blanket.
I like the crunching sound it makes
when I walk on it.
Snow in the air feels fresh on my face.
I like the quiet of the neighbourhood
after a snowfall.
I hear the flakes settling
on the branches of the trees
and on my head.
Under the car tires
there is a funny sort of screech
and it makes me laugh to myself
as the dog and I
walk safely on the sidewalk.
I like to get bundled up in my coat
and don my boots.
I won’t wear a new t-shirt,
but my old boots and coat
are my winter friends.
I think I could walk forever
on a snowy day.
No heat and humidity
to disturb my inner thermometer.
The world seems calm
and peaceful and pretty
when the snow falls and
I am out in it.
In my younger days
I used to ski across the fields,
but winters were colder then
and we had more snow.
I like the thought of snowshoeing
like the native people of Canada
and our early settlers.
It feels like you could forget
all the cares of our modern day lives
when out on a good walk
in the snow.
-------------------------------
Today is the day to make it happen:
Let’s go for it!
AB 19 Jan 2013
I am a proud man
who prefers to do my best at all times.
I am trying my best always.
Today is the day to make it happen,
so let’s go for it!
I will do my best
which may not be
the expectations of others.
Is it necessary to be the way
others expect me to be?
I am a man with new thoughts and my own ideas.
If it is important to me, I will make it happen.
I need to know that,
if I don’t get to the finish line,
it is okay.
It is a journey, not a race.
My dreams to make my life the best it can be
need to be worked on every day.
I am a man with great determination;
but there is a limit.
I am a great schemer of good ideas;
I fool myself.
I want things that are always out of my reach;
but I keep stretching myself to get there.
It is my responsibility and choice
to be the person I choose,
whether it is making the best
of a not-so-great situation
or seeking something new.
I need to run towards it
and take the decision to make it mine.
Today is the day to make it happen;
so let’s go for it!
Monday, 3 December 2012
Bridges Connections 2012
To my Bridges friends in particular
I miss you already! I hope we have worked out a real way to keep in touch during the winter months when there are no Bridges gatherings.
Using a combination of email to everyone and links to my Andrew’s Bridges blog, we can send messages to one and all.
This could work around the year also. I'm thinking this could become a way of connecting us all through the year as well, when people who live far away cannot come to every gathering. Also we can be connected to friends like Tim and John who now live far away. This may be a step towards using Skype at the same time to have a ”virtual” gathering.
Using Andrew’s Bridges Blog to keep in touch over the winter
We are thinking of timing our Bridges message activity around the time of month that we plan to meet in 2013—around the middle of the month.
Many of us depend on others for our access to email or the Internet. But if we have a whole week, it could work for someone in our circle of friends to support us?
You don't need to type long messages. Just something so we know you are still there.....
How we can do this
1. We will alert you with an email message that there is new material in the blog that could interest you and give you the link: Click on the link: http://andrewsbridges.blogspot.ca/
2. This link takes you to the Home page. You will see my most recent messages at the top of the page. Older messages are lower down.
You may simply browse and read information.
Or you could add comments and questions.
Just a simple greeting will cheer us to know that you are well.
Your messages may stimulate others to comment and prompt us to add to or adapt the information.
This is how to comment
· Underneath each post, click on where it says 'comments'. (It might say 'No comments' or '1 comment', etc. depending on how many people have already commented).
· Enter your comment in the space provided. You have the option of making a comment to the original post, or replying to another comment that has been posted in response to the original post.
· Underneath your comment, you will be asked to select a profile. Choose any of the options. If you don't have any of the mentioned accounts, you can just choose 'name/url' and it will give you an option to enter your name (you can make up a nick name if you prefer or use your real name. It also gives you the option to add your own website if you want to.)
· Or you can just comment as an anonymous person if you wish.
· When you click 'publish', you will be asked to verify numbers and/or words. After you do this, your comment will be posted once reviewed by the moderator.
Some Ideas for Discussion
To start with, I have some questions to match the time of year and some that were suggested at our last gathering. I am posting all these now, with some ideas on four of them. Perhaps you could reply to say which topics interest you most?
1. How do you like the prospect of winter which is starting early this year?
AB: I love winter and running and walking in the snow! I am thinking about the snow to come and how I will enjoy the crisp cool days. The snow makes everything fresh and new and it gives me a good feeling that things are improving and going to be better every day. Yes it is like a new beginning and the footprints in the snow are the new journey that is marked in it each step of the way. It is good to feel the soft flakes on my face. It is like feathers tickling my nose. I like that feeling a lot –even though I hate to be tickled.
2. Do you make plans for the New Year? Do you plan ahead for new things? How do you feel about change?
AB: I think it is a good idea for everyone to have this in mind because things change. Many of us don’t like to think about change but it is real so let’s plan for it, so it will be more accepted when it happens.
I want to be a good friend and keep in touch with friends near and far away. I know how good it feels to hear from my friends I want them to know I care also. I am happy to think about all the people in my life and live through them sometimes in the great stories they share. I don't need to travel far to know what is happening all over the world because part of me is already there with my friends. I am going to travel far some day but for now I am happy to be here in Guelph.
I hope to see my Aroha friends [special circle friends] near Christmas. Maybe do more poems with Beth and Judi and paint with Heidi.
In my mind I see my friends circling around me in support. I feel I might not fall between the cracks if I have my Aroha in the days ahead when my parents cannot be in my life. My Aroha will keep the intentions and values we determined together. It is wise to have a plan and start it while your parents are alive. Friends not strangers will support me when the crisis comes in the future. I will be upset when G and E go but I will have a life in place.
3. What do you most enjoy to eat? Could we share our recipe favourites?
AB: I love all my foods but I think my fish dishes are the best. How can I make them myself? I like to have a lot of green things. How can I make the new fish dishes with green vegetables?
4. What is your favourite form of exercise?
AB: I am hoping to run more and maybe in a long distance marathon. I love to run fast and furious. It will be fun to run that way again soon. I sometimes run too fast at the beginning then slow down and even stop. I need someone to remind me it was my good idea and say” so move along Andrew!”
5. What it’s like to travel—what helps with any changes in routine. How do we keep to our diets when out of our regular patterns?
6. How can we get used to communicating and using ST when away from our usual places and support people?
7. How can we encourage staff or new people to have conversations with us when they may be shy about ST? One tip at our last gathering: “At first I told them all the nice things that I was thinking”. Another tip: “Carry your communication board/device everywhere!
8. What it’s like to live in your own home. If I want to, how do I start?
9. Are any of us sensitive to things in our environment—weather (heat, humidity…), phases of moon, noise, vibrations, bright lights, pollution?
10. Are you interested in keeping learning? If so, what subjects are you interested in?
AB: People did not think I could learn when I was school age. Now I want to continue to learn and maybe get a diploma. Art history is my first choice, with some music as well. I want to learn about the environment and history too. I need my special style of learning to be recognized. I need to see and hear things over again. I think my senses are overactive and they need to slow down to take in the information.
I miss you already! I hope we have worked out a real way to keep in touch during the winter months when there are no Bridges gatherings.
Using a combination of email to everyone and links to my Andrew’s Bridges blog, we can send messages to one and all.
This could work around the year also. I'm thinking this could become a way of connecting us all through the year as well, when people who live far away cannot come to every gathering. Also we can be connected to friends like Tim and John who now live far away. This may be a step towards using Skype at the same time to have a ”virtual” gathering.
Using Andrew’s Bridges Blog to keep in touch over the winter
We are thinking of timing our Bridges message activity around the time of month that we plan to meet in 2013—around the middle of the month.
Many of us depend on others for our access to email or the Internet. But if we have a whole week, it could work for someone in our circle of friends to support us?
You don't need to type long messages. Just something so we know you are still there.....
How we can do this
1. We will alert you with an email message that there is new material in the blog that could interest you and give you the link: Click on the link: http://andrewsbridges.blogspot.ca/
2. This link takes you to the Home page. You will see my most recent messages at the top of the page. Older messages are lower down.
You may simply browse and read information.
Or you could add comments and questions.
Just a simple greeting will cheer us to know that you are well.
Your messages may stimulate others to comment and prompt us to add to or adapt the information.
This is how to comment
· Underneath each post, click on where it says 'comments'. (It might say 'No comments' or '1 comment', etc. depending on how many people have already commented).
· Enter your comment in the space provided. You have the option of making a comment to the original post, or replying to another comment that has been posted in response to the original post.
· Underneath your comment, you will be asked to select a profile. Choose any of the options. If you don't have any of the mentioned accounts, you can just choose 'name/url' and it will give you an option to enter your name (you can make up a nick name if you prefer or use your real name. It also gives you the option to add your own website if you want to.)
· Or you can just comment as an anonymous person if you wish.
· When you click 'publish', you will be asked to verify numbers and/or words. After you do this, your comment will be posted once reviewed by the moderator.
Some Ideas for Discussion
To start with, I have some questions to match the time of year and some that were suggested at our last gathering. I am posting all these now, with some ideas on four of them. Perhaps you could reply to say which topics interest you most?
1. How do you like the prospect of winter which is starting early this year?
AB: I love winter and running and walking in the snow! I am thinking about the snow to come and how I will enjoy the crisp cool days. The snow makes everything fresh and new and it gives me a good feeling that things are improving and going to be better every day. Yes it is like a new beginning and the footprints in the snow are the new journey that is marked in it each step of the way. It is good to feel the soft flakes on my face. It is like feathers tickling my nose. I like that feeling a lot –even though I hate to be tickled.
2. Do you make plans for the New Year? Do you plan ahead for new things? How do you feel about change?
AB: I think it is a good idea for everyone to have this in mind because things change. Many of us don’t like to think about change but it is real so let’s plan for it, so it will be more accepted when it happens.
I want to be a good friend and keep in touch with friends near and far away. I know how good it feels to hear from my friends I want them to know I care also. I am happy to think about all the people in my life and live through them sometimes in the great stories they share. I don't need to travel far to know what is happening all over the world because part of me is already there with my friends. I am going to travel far some day but for now I am happy to be here in Guelph.
I hope to see my Aroha friends [special circle friends] near Christmas. Maybe do more poems with Beth and Judi and paint with Heidi.
In my mind I see my friends circling around me in support. I feel I might not fall between the cracks if I have my Aroha in the days ahead when my parents cannot be in my life. My Aroha will keep the intentions and values we determined together. It is wise to have a plan and start it while your parents are alive. Friends not strangers will support me when the crisis comes in the future. I will be upset when G and E go but I will have a life in place.
3. What do you most enjoy to eat? Could we share our recipe favourites?
AB: I love all my foods but I think my fish dishes are the best. How can I make them myself? I like to have a lot of green things. How can I make the new fish dishes with green vegetables?
4. What is your favourite form of exercise?
AB: I am hoping to run more and maybe in a long distance marathon. I love to run fast and furious. It will be fun to run that way again soon. I sometimes run too fast at the beginning then slow down and even stop. I need someone to remind me it was my good idea and say” so move along Andrew!”
5. What it’s like to travel—what helps with any changes in routine. How do we keep to our diets when out of our regular patterns?
6. How can we get used to communicating and using ST when away from our usual places and support people?
7. How can we encourage staff or new people to have conversations with us when they may be shy about ST? One tip at our last gathering: “At first I told them all the nice things that I was thinking”. Another tip: “Carry your communication board/device everywhere!
8. What it’s like to live in your own home. If I want to, how do I start?
9. Are any of us sensitive to things in our environment—weather (heat, humidity…), phases of moon, noise, vibrations, bright lights, pollution?
10. Are you interested in keeping learning? If so, what subjects are you interested in?
AB: People did not think I could learn when I was school age. Now I want to continue to learn and maybe get a diploma. Art history is my first choice, with some music as well. I want to learn about the environment and history too. I need my special style of learning to be recognized. I need to see and hear things over again. I think my senses are overactive and they need to slow down to take in the information.
Monday, 13 August 2012
Monday, 9 July 2012
Monday, 18 June 2012
Bridges latest newsletter
Hello everyone!
Here is the link to our latest Bridges newsletter http://www.ont-autism.uoguelph.ca/BoB-12-2012.pdf online. We also do it on paper: if you would like a paper copy, please let me know.
This bulletin, the first for ten months, includes:
--news from Tim and Betty in Nova Scotia,
--reports of how Sara and Matt spoke up for themselves and Bridges at public gatherings,
--short summaries of our last seven gatherings,
--notes on our Bridges Mural, the Song of Hope for Bridges, my article for the Canadian Journal of Disability Studies, and my Andrew's Bridges blog.
--some thoughts about "growing" Bridges to reach more people who have no voice yet. As well as the awareness of our communication rights that we have been working on, we need more trained communication intermediaries to make a difference.
Here is the link to our latest Bridges newsletter http://www.ont-autism.uoguelph.ca/BoB-12-2012.pdf online. We also do it on paper: if you would like a paper copy, please let me know.
This bulletin, the first for ten months, includes:
--news from Tim and Betty in Nova Scotia,
--reports of how Sara and Matt spoke up for themselves and Bridges at public gatherings,
--short summaries of our last seven gatherings,
--notes on our Bridges Mural, the Song of Hope for Bridges, my article for the Canadian Journal of Disability Studies, and my Andrew's Bridges blog.
--some thoughts about "growing" Bridges to reach more people who have no voice yet. As well as the awareness of our communication rights that we have been working on, we need more trained communication intermediaries to make a difference.
Monday, 14 May 2012
My New Article
I want to tell you that my article about Supported Typing and
Bridges-Over-Barriers was published this week in the Canadian Journal of
Disability Studies. My title is: "What everyone yearns for: really good
support to communicate. The Ontario story of Bridges-Over-Barriers".
The article is online at this link: http://cjds.uwaterloo.ca/
Reading the article is free but you have to register and sign in. I suggest you choose to read the article in PDF format as the HTML format at present misses important punctuation and even one paragraph is missing. The only drawback is that you can't view the clip of our Bridges video from inside the PDF document. You have to get into the HTML version about 60 per cent through to get to the video link. Special thanks to Christine for preparing this clip from the original video.
I thank everyone who encouraged me to think about and compose this article. I hope very strongly that more people will understand how important it is for us to communicate and connect, to express ourselves and make choices about our lives. Please pass on this link to anyone who could help or be helped. Comments and questions are welcome.
Some new poems to share.....
A Home of My Very Own
AB 2 May 2012
Getting my own home
was a way of growing up,
a way of putting down roots,
and a way of gaining respect.
Getting my own home
was a way of feeling safe,
knowing I would never again
have to live anywhere
that was not good for me.
I want to know I am king in my castle
and no one can beat down my doors.
I want to know I am showing others
I can do this and that maybe
they can too.
I want to know
we are teaching others
about living a good life
and that having one’s own home
is a key ingredient.
A key is a way to unlock the door
to new experiences
but it is also a way
to keep out annoyances.
Things that are bothersome or
that make me feel limited
may not get past the doorway.
I will always welcome those who
who come with open hearts and minds
and a hunger for friendship and good food.
--------------
Dreaming to be free
AB 11 May 2012
Freedom to me is about living
every day with meaning and purpose.
I have reason to doubt and
reason to be discouraged.
I am the author of my story.
It can be a sad one or a happy one
with things to share about my strengths.
I am choosing the story
with a positive way of reading.
My hope is to give others hope with my stories.
I want to be an encourager.
I want to be ambitious.
I am independent and strong.
If I use my challenges to help others grow
I can use my life to be a kind of leader.
I am determined to show myself and others
I can achieve if I believe I can.
I am an achiever of big dreams
that I live out everyday
This will give me reason to live
and dream to be free.
I will then be free to be me.
Reading the article is free but you have to register and sign in. I suggest you choose to read the article in PDF format as the HTML format at present misses important punctuation and even one paragraph is missing. The only drawback is that you can't view the clip of our Bridges video from inside the PDF document. You have to get into the HTML version about 60 per cent through to get to the video link. Special thanks to Christine for preparing this clip from the original video.
I thank everyone who encouraged me to think about and compose this article. I hope very strongly that more people will understand how important it is for us to communicate and connect, to express ourselves and make choices about our lives. Please pass on this link to anyone who could help or be helped. Comments and questions are welcome.
Some new poems to share.....
A Home of My Very Own
AB 2 May 2012
Getting my own home
was a way of growing up,
a way of putting down roots,
and a way of gaining respect.
Getting my own home
was a way of feeling safe,
knowing I would never again
have to live anywhere
that was not good for me.
I want to know I am king in my castle
and no one can beat down my doors.
I want to know I am showing others
I can do this and that maybe
they can too.
I want to know
we are teaching others
about living a good life
and that having one’s own home
is a key ingredient.
A key is a way to unlock the door
to new experiences
but it is also a way
to keep out annoyances.
Things that are bothersome or
that make me feel limited
may not get past the doorway.
I will always welcome those who
who come with open hearts and minds
and a hunger for friendship and good food.
--------------
Dreaming to be free
AB 11 May 2012
Freedom to me is about living
every day with meaning and purpose.
I have reason to doubt and
reason to be discouraged.
I am the author of my story.
It can be a sad one or a happy one
with things to share about my strengths.
I am choosing the story
with a positive way of reading.
My hope is to give others hope with my stories.
I want to be an encourager.
I want to be ambitious.
I am independent and strong.
If I use my challenges to help others grow
I can use my life to be a kind of leader.
I am determined to show myself and others
I can achieve if I believe I can.
I am an achiever of big dreams
that I live out everyday
This will give me reason to live
and dream to be free.
I will then be free to be me.
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