I was very moved by an article I saw in the Oregonian yesterday (2/18) on page 1 of the Metro section: “Dancing (and living) Her Dream.”  The piece concerned a young woman, Kiera Brinkley, age 16, who is a dancer.  But not just any dancer.  You see, she contracted meningococcal disease when she was 2, and in order to save her life, doctors had to amputate her legs above the knee and her arms below the elbow.  I thought about this child–never able to carry out the simple functions of everyday life on her own, never able to brush her teeth or touch the face of a loved one with her finger tips. 

Kiera has always known she looks different, the reporter tells us, but her mother, Elesha Boyd has ensured that the difference her daughter feels is only on the outside.  Kiera’s social worker at Shriner’s Hospital says that Kiera was “obviously distraught” after the amputations, but her mother saw her “as the same girl, just shorter” and she always treated her like a normal kid.  So Kiera saw herself as normal, too.

Therapists taught her to walk with prostheses, and when it was time for Kiera to enter elementary school, her mother asked the school to show a film about children who come to Shriner’s.  So when Kiera showed up at school, she was seen as a movie star, because she was like the kids in the movie.  She lived up to that image.

Kiera became a cheerleader, using prostheses.  Then she discovered that she like to dance, and she began tap-dancing lessons, wearing pants on the bottom of which her mother.had fitted taps.  “When I dance,” Kiera says, “people see me as a girl who’s smiling.  They don’t see me a girl who’s not considered whole.”

Last year Dream Factory got in touch with Kiera and asked her to tell them her wish.  She was shy, but she finally admitted that her dream was to travel to New York and go to a workshop at Julliard.  She and her family went, and Kiera worked with some of the best dancers at this prestigious school.  After the workshop, the dancers said they wanted to learn from her.  They lined up behind her and she taught them a dance she had choreographed herself.

Kiera danced for her school last week.  Her dance was full of heart, and she danced as though she had no limbs missing at all.  Students began clapping in time to the music, first one, then others, then everyone.  When her dance was over, they rose up and gave Kiera a standing ovation.

I thought about this extraordinary young woman and her personal accomplishments.  I mused upon what had made it possible for a child with such a difficult beginning to live with such verve and confidence.  The story has a lot to teach all of us:

–When we are little, we learn who we are by how others perceive us, especially our parents.

–The eyes of love are a powerful antidote to fear and hopelessness.

–We can all do some things well–we need to find those things and give our gifts to the world.

–We need to dream always.

–We need to voice our dreams, no matter how outlandish they may seem.

–All of us, no matter how much of an “expert” in our field, can learn from others.  A truly great person is always characterized by humility.

–Giving makes a person feel strong and valuable.