Skip to main content

Great Expectations 2021

 In 2020 our lives were a bit all over the place but I, and the world, have great expectations for 2021.

The darling that is democracy will hopefully become stable once more with the dumping of Trump and the powerhouse team of Biden and Harris taking the reigns. 

It is important however to remember that not everything will be fixed overnight. We have to be prepared to go with the rhythm of the world. COVID-19 is not over yet. We have to be willing to alter our timing based on the scientific advice.

We have to go with the flow and realise that it is time to put runs on the board and worry about the victory years down the track. We are all part of one human family. 

With a new democratic president being sworn in I am reminded of the question JFK posed to the world, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country’. 

This is going to be my approach to 2021. I have set myself the goal of using my acting skills to demonstrate what is possible. I aim to be to Australian acting what Dylan Alcott is to tennis. 

I also aim to show the community the reality of my disability by painting pictures with my poetry like Frida Kahlo did with her paintings. 

Lastly it is my mission to talk the talk of human rights and social justice with the same passion and focus as Martin Luther King. 

I know these are lofty goals for 2021 so I plan to approach all of this like a sculptor where each goal is like a big block of marble and I get closer to it by chipping away one piece each day. 

It is important to remember that humanity still has big challenges ahead in 2021 but amazing things cannot happen if the world shrinks away from great expectations. 



Great Expectations


The world is at a precarious stage and a leader must be able to handle

 The great expectations that fly off Mr Dicken's page. 

A leader takes control of a nation but must be willing to pay the rent

Otherwise the voters will swiftly kick out an incompetent tyrant.


I am prepared to play my part. 

I am happy to be big on the small screen and small on the big screen

To show the world a side to disability they have never seen. 

I talk the talk and lend my voice and hope one day my words will be remembered alongside 'I have a dream'.


My brain is free and my body sits inside a broken wheelchair.

Hopefully the world will see an important energy lived in that person there.

I humble myself and hope the world will be one nation

And hope that everyday actions can fulfil great expectations. 


©️Chris Van Ingen | 21 January 2021


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Defend Our NDIS

 Defend our NDIS; people have had enough of cuts and changes to the NDIS. The Every Australian Counts campaign has organised a national day of action and events across Australia to take place on 28th of April.  I have been involved in the NDIS from the initial trial phase through to today. People may remember that I was involved in an advertising campaign spruiking the benefits to come once the scheme was up and running.  ‘You’re in charge! Yes we are, aren’t we!’ For awhile this was the truth for participants like myself. I have been very lucky and received 90 percent of what I need from NDIS.  The question is would I have received the same benefits if I was not a skilled disability advocate?  People with disabilities want the original version of the scheme that was promised without having to fight for a reasonable request. It would be a more efficient scheme if the government put the millions of dollars in legal fees into service delivery instead.  According to the Australian Service
3 comments
Read more

A Vision for an Inclusive Australia (DRC Final Report)

 The final revised version of the Disability Royal Commission (DRC) into violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation was published on 2 November 2023.  The Royal Commission ran for four years with hundreds of people with disabilities testifying at hearings and thousands more supplying the Commission with written submissions.  The final report titled Our Vision for An Inclusive Australia  made 222 recommendations to improve laws, policies, structures, and practices to ensure a more inclusive and just society. That supports the independence of people with disabilities and their right to live a life free from violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation.  The report covers 12 volumes ranging from:  Voices of People with Disability  About the Royal Commission Nature and Extent of Violence, Abuse, and Exploitation Realising the Human Rights of People with Disability  Governing for Inclusion Inclusive Education, Employment, and Housing Enabling Autonomy and Access Criminal Justice and People wi
Post a Comment
Read more

United in Action (International Day of People with Disability 2023)

 International Day of People with Disability is here again. It is a day to celebrate the achievements of people with disabilities while at the same time reminding the world that people with disabilities need access to equality.  This year's UN theme is United in Action to rescue and achieve the sustainable development goals for, with, and by people with disability.  Around this time every year I am blown away by the giants in the world who live with a disability and I am using today's post to highlight just a few.  First let me tell you about Natalie Wade, a passionate lawyer who works in the area of disability rights law. Natalie is also the coauthor of Disability Rights in Real Life Handbook  as well as being the inaugural orator for the Disability Leadership Oration . This will air at 5pm AEDT on ABC TV and ABC iview on the 3 December 2023.  The next person I wish to highlight today is Elly Desmarchelier, a brilliant disability advocate, writer, and national spokesperson for
Post a Comment
Read more