“From sneaking into underground basements in Tehran to learning to dance with almost no words in Northern California, I had done everything I could.”
disability
Posted inCuration
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Recommending stories from Archie Bland, Elizabeth Bruenig, Anat Rubin, Dexter Thomas, and Elena Gosalvez Blanco.
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Boy Who Came Back: The Near-Death, and Changed Life, of My Son Max
“It was, we were told, a case of sudden infant death syndrome interrupted. What followed would transform my understanding of parenting, disability and the breadth of what makes a meaningful life.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Blind Leading the Gamers
“Ross Minor lost his eyesight at 8 years old. Today, he’s a hardcore gamer who runs YouTube and Twitch channels and consults for big studios. This is not—necessarily—an inspirational story.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Loving Him Meant Facing My Greatest Fear
“Living with a disability, I shielded myself from dance. Then I met him.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Long Haul
“Now I rarely let myself think of those Before Times. Describing what was once my life is like trying to recapture a sensation, a place that only ever existed in a dream.”
Posted inEssays & Criticism
Flying Solo
On self-love and self-acceptance while aging in a disabled body.
Posted inStory
Things That Able Me
Christy Tending | Longreads | February 2, 2023 | 14 minutes (3,768 words) There are things that able me. A chair. One person speaking to me at a time. Shoes that are not cute, but spare me nerve pain. A hot bath with epsom salts: so hot it would scald most, but my skin is like […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Space to Breathe
“I can suction while gathering my spirits, while holding out for my son’s right to exist, to be present, to take up space, to interrupt ‘usual’ life.”