ASK ME
My oldest brother, Thomas, was an engineer and was selected for Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. I had a brother who was three or four years younger but he died at the age of four of spinal meningitis. It was a fulminant case and took him in just 24 hours.
My next brother, Richard, also received an engineering degree, later went to law school and entered the bar. My next brother, John, fell out of a third story window, also around the age of four, fractured his skull and was nearly k**led. He wound up brain damaged with a variable IQ that could fall into the r****ded range and had poor motor co-ordination. I was the youngest of my family and became a physician. Our sister was about four years younger than John and eight older than I.
Growing up was painful for me, to a large degree due to him, we called him Jack; Thomas, Tom and Richard, Dick. Jack was eleven years older than I and I saw him struggling to play softball and the other games the neighborhood kids played in the heart of Manhattan. Children can be cruel, both intentionally and unintentionally. He was often ridiculed and called names, those were some of the intentional things but the unintentional may have hurt more. He was often told to get our sister to play because ‘she plays better than you do.’ It was hard seeing that.
As I grew up, it wasn’t too long before I was outperforming him in every game; softball, stickball, football, basketball, etc., all the staples of city life but Jack never complained or displayed any resentment of it nor for my academic achievements that quickly outstripped his.
Jack’s condition left him with few employment options. I’m not even sure if he ever received a high school diploma or G.E.D. He was always the last hired and first fired but every time he was let go, the very next day, he’d be looking for a job, checking the help wanted columns, pounding the pavement or revisiting old connections.
He did what many would call menial jobs. They were not even custodial jobs but usually courier positions. Occasionally, he would land a job in a company mail room which would be a huge step up for him because he wouldn’t have to be trodding around New York City, exposed to deep cold, inclement weather of the city’s winters and its hot, humid summers.
His c*********d mental and physical condition left him spurned as he entered his courting years but he finally married when he was nearly forty years old. It was during those years, the early 1970s, that the economy floundered and he, once again, entered the ranks of the unemployed. As was characteristic, he immediately began, unsuccessfully, looking for work but to no avail for weeks and months and his wife was the household bread winner.
Jack was unemployed so long that, our brother, Dick, the lawyer, finally went to him and told him that he couldn’t go on much longer and that he should apply for some kind of public assistance, welfare. Dick offered to help him with the paperwork.
Jack then went to our mother and told her about it and said he just didn’t want to go on welfare. He never did and finally, after a while longer, did find a job.
With two brothers engineers, one of them an attorney and the other a physician, there can be little doubt that Jack’s life was made markedly worse due to his injury. Yet through all his incapacity and the suffering, personal and emotional, Jack never went on welfare.
Now ask me about welfare.
crazylibertarian wrote:
ASK ME
My oldest brother, Thomas, was an engineer and was selected for Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. I had a brother who was three or four years younger but he died at the age of four of spinal meningitis. It was a fulminant case and took him in just 24 hours.
My next brother, Richard, also received an engineering degree, later went to law school and entered the bar. My next brother, John, fell out of a third story window, also around the age of four, fractured his skull and was nearly k**led. He wound up brain damaged with a variable IQ that could fall into the r****ded range and had poor motor co-ordination. I was the youngest of my family and became a physician. Our sister was about four years younger than John and eight older than I.
Growing up was painful for me, to a large degree due to him, we called him Jack; Thomas, Tom and Richard, Dick. Jack was eleven years older than I and I saw him struggling to play softball and the other games the neighborhood kids played in the heart of Manhattan. Children can be cruel, both intentionally and unintentionally. He was often ridiculed and called names, those were some of the intentional things but the unintentional may have hurt more. He was often told to get our sister to play because ‘she plays better than you do.’ It was hard seeing that.
As I grew up, it wasn’t too long before I was outperforming him in every game; softball, stickball, football, basketball, etc., all the staples of city life but Jack never complained or displayed any resentment of it nor for my academic achievements that quickly outstripped his.
Jack’s condition left him with few employment options. I’m not even sure if he ever received a high school diploma or G.E.D. He was always the last hired and first fired but every time he was let go, the very next day, he’d be looking for a job, checking the help wanted columns, pounding the pavement or revisiting old connections.
He did what many would call menial jobs. They were not even custodial jobs but usually courier positions. Occasionally, he would land a job in a company mail room which would be a huge step up for him because he wouldn’t have to be trodding around New York City, exposed to deep cold, inclement weather of the city’s winters and its hot, humid summers.
His c*********d mental and physical condition left him spurned as he entered his courting years but he finally married when he was nearly forty years old. It was during those years, the early 1970s, that the economy floundered and he, once again, entered the ranks of the unemployed. As was characteristic, he immediately began, unsuccessfully, looking for work but to no avail for weeks and months and his wife was the household bread winner.
Jack was unemployed so long that, our brother, Dick, the lawyer, finally went to him and told him that he couldn’t go on much longer and that he should apply for some kind of public assistance, welfare. Dick offered to help him with the paperwork.
Jack then went to our mother and told her about it and said he just didn’t want to go on welfare. He never did and finally, after a while longer, did find a job.
With two brothers engineers, one of them an attorney and the other a physician, there can be little doubt that Jack’s life was made markedly worse due to his injury. Yet through all his incapacity and the suffering, personal and emotional, Jack never went on welfare.
Now ask me about welfare.
ASK ME br br br br My oldest brother, Thomas, w... (
show quote)
This was so heartbreaking and at the same time, heartwarming. Made me think of my grandmother and her saying she wished all who wanted to work could work, etc. Your brother is an admirable person and so, I think, are you. Thank you for sharing.
crazylibertarian wrote:
ASK ME
My oldest brother, Thomas, was an engineer and was selected for Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. I had a brother who was three or four years younger but he died at the age of four of spinal meningitis. It was a fulminant case and took him in just 24 hours.
My next brother, Richard, also received an engineering degree, later went to law school and entered the bar. My next brother, John, fell out of a third story window, also around the age of four, fractured his skull and was nearly k**led. He wound up brain damaged with a variable IQ that could fall into the r****ded range and had poor motor co-ordination. I was the youngest of my family and became a physician. Our sister was about four years younger than John and eight older than I.
Growing up was painful for me, to a large degree due to him, we called him Jack; Thomas, Tom and Richard, Dick. Jack was eleven years older than I and I saw him struggling to play softball and the other games the neighborhood kids played in the heart of Manhattan. Children can be cruel, both intentionally and unintentionally. He was often ridiculed and called names, those were some of the intentional things but the unintentional may have hurt more. He was often told to get our sister to play because ‘she plays better than you do.’ It was hard seeing that.
As I grew up, it wasn’t too long before I was outperforming him in every game; softball, stickball, football, basketball, etc., all the staples of city life but Jack never complained or displayed any resentment of it nor for my academic achievements that quickly outstripped his.
Jack’s condition left him with few employment options. I’m not even sure if he ever received a high school diploma or G.E.D. He was always the last hired and first fired but every time he was let go, the very next day, he’d be looking for a job, checking the help wanted columns, pounding the pavement or revisiting old connections.
He did what many would call menial jobs. They were not even custodial jobs but usually courier positions. Occasionally, he would land a job in a company mail room which would be a huge step up for him because he wouldn’t have to be trodding around New York City, exposed to deep cold, inclement weather of the city’s winters and its hot, humid summers.
His c*********d mental and physical condition left him spurned as he entered his courting years but he finally married when he was nearly forty years old. It was during those years, the early 1970s, that the economy floundered and he, once again, entered the ranks of the unemployed. As was characteristic, he immediately began, unsuccessfully, looking for work but to no avail for weeks and months and his wife was the household bread winner.
Jack was unemployed so long that, our brother, Dick, the lawyer, finally went to him and told him that he couldn’t go on much longer and that he should apply for some kind of public assistance, welfare. Dick offered to help him with the paperwork.
Jack then went to our mother and told her about it and said he just didn’t want to go on welfare. He never did and finally, after a while longer, did find a job.
With two brothers engineers, one of them an attorney and the other a physician, there can be little doubt that Jack’s life was made markedly worse due to his injury. Yet through all his incapacity and the suffering, personal and emotional, Jack never went on welfare.
Now ask me about welfare.
ASK ME br br br br My oldest brother, Thomas, w... (
show quote)
As a highschool student I worked parttime at mcdonald's...There was a fella there who was obviously r****ded, did custodial work... He rode a bike and spent his off hours (worked another job as a dishwasher at another restaurant) picking up bottles...
He never missed a shift and always had a smile... Lived with his mother (retired) and paid the bills... I asked him once why he didn't go on welfare or disibility...
"Because I'm a man"...
crazylibertarian wrote:
ASK ME
My oldest brother, Thomas, was an engineer and was selected for Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. I had a brother who was three or four years younger but he died at the age of four of spinal meningitis. It was a fulminant case and took him in just 24 hours.
My next brother, Richard, also received an engineering degree, later went to law school and entered the bar. My next brother, John, fell out of a third story window, also around the age of four, fractured his skull and was nearly k**led. He wound up brain damaged with a variable IQ that could fall into the r****ded range and had poor motor co-ordination. I was the youngest of my family and became a physician. Our sister was about four years younger than John and eight older than I.
Growing up was painful for me, to a large degree due to him, we called him Jack; Thomas, Tom and Richard, Dick. Jack was eleven years older than I and I saw him struggling to play softball and the other games the neighborhood kids played in the heart of Manhattan. Children can be cruel, both intentionally and unintentionally. He was often ridiculed and called names, those were some of the intentional things but the unintentional may have hurt more. He was often told to get our sister to play because ‘she plays better than you do.’ It was hard seeing that.
As I grew up, it wasn’t too long before I was outperforming him in every game; softball, stickball, football, basketball, etc., all the staples of city life but Jack never complained or displayed any resentment of it nor for my academic achievements that quickly outstripped his.
Jack’s condition left him with few employment options. I’m not even sure if he ever received a high school diploma or G.E.D. He was always the last hired and first fired but every time he was let go, the very next day, he’d be looking for a job, checking the help wanted columns, pounding the pavement or revisiting old connections.
He did what many would call menial jobs. They were not even custodial jobs but usually courier positions. Occasionally, he would land a job in a company mail room which would be a huge step up for him because he wouldn’t have to be trodding around New York City, exposed to deep cold, inclement weather of the city’s winters and its hot, humid summers.
His c*********d mental and physical condition left him spurned as he entered his courting years but he finally married when he was nearly forty years old. It was during those years, the early 1970s, that the economy floundered and he, once again, entered the ranks of the unemployed. As was characteristic, he immediately began, unsuccessfully, looking for work but to no avail for weeks and months and his wife was the household bread winner.
Jack was unemployed so long that, our brother, Dick, the lawyer, finally went to him and told him that he couldn’t go on much longer and that he should apply for some kind of public assistance, welfare. Dick offered to help him with the paperwork.
Jack then went to our mother and told her about it and said he just didn’t want to go on welfare. He never did and finally, after a while longer, did find a job.
With two brothers engineers, one of them an attorney and the other a physician, there can be little doubt that Jack’s life was made markedly worse due to his injury. Yet through all his incapacity and the suffering, personal and emotional, Jack never went on welfare.
Now ask me about welfare.
ASK ME br br br br My oldest brother, Thomas, w... (
show quote)
Heartwarming, thanks for sharing.
If only more people had the fortitude of your brother. He deserves credit for above all, just BEING A MAN. Thank you John, I didn't think we had any more left.
crazylibertarian wrote:
ASK ME
My oldest brother, Thomas, was an engineer and was selected for Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. I had a brother who was three or four years younger but he died at the age of four of spinal meningitis. It was a fulminant case and took him in just 24 hours.
My next brother, Richard, also received an engineering degree, later went to law school and entered the bar. My next brother, John, fell out of a third story window, also around the age of four, fractured his skull and was nearly k**led. He wound up brain damaged with a variable IQ that could fall into the r****ded range and had poor motor co-ordination. I was the youngest of my family and became a physician. Our sister was about four years younger than John and eight older than I.
Growing up was painful for me, to a large degree due to him, we called him Jack; Thomas, Tom and Richard, Dick. Jack was eleven years older than I and I saw him struggling to play softball and the other games the neighborhood kids played in the heart of Manhattan. Children can be cruel, both intentionally and unintentionally. He was often ridiculed and called names, those were some of the intentional things but the unintentional may have hurt more. He was often told to get our sister to play because ‘she plays better than you do.’ It was hard seeing that.
As I grew up, it wasn’t too long before I was outperforming him in every game; softball, stickball, football, basketball, etc., all the staples of city life but Jack never complained or displayed any resentment of it nor for my academic achievements that quickly outstripped his.
Jack’s condition left him with few employment options. I’m not even sure if he ever received a high school diploma or G.E.D. He was always the last hired and first fired but every time he was let go, the very next day, he’d be looking for a job, checking the help wanted columns, pounding the pavement or revisiting old connections.
He did what many would call menial jobs. They were not even custodial jobs but usually courier positions. Occasionally, he would land a job in a company mail room which would be a huge step up for him because he wouldn’t have to be trodding around New York City, exposed to deep cold, inclement weather of the city’s winters and its hot, humid summers.
His c*********d mental and physical condition left him spurned as he entered his courting years but he finally married when he was nearly forty years old. It was during those years, the early 1970s, that the economy floundered and he, once again, entered the ranks of the unemployed. As was characteristic, he immediately began, unsuccessfully, looking for work but to no avail for weeks and months and his wife was the household bread winner.
Jack was unemployed so long that, our brother, Dick, the lawyer, finally went to him and told him that he couldn’t go on much longer and that he should apply for some kind of public assistance, welfare. Dick offered to help him with the paperwork.
Jack then went to our mother and told her about it and said he just didn’t want to go on welfare. He never did and finally, after a while longer, did find a job.
With two brothers engineers, one of them an attorney and the other a physician, there can be little doubt that Jack’s life was made markedly worse due to his injury. Yet through all his incapacity and the suffering, personal and emotional, Jack never went on welfare.
Now ask me about welfare.
ASK ME br br br br My oldest brother, Thomas, w... (
show quote)
Thank you for a very heartwarming and uplifting story.
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