The Temple Grandin Perspective...

A friend of mine has been struggling with writing about relationships. She recently moved and began a journey of a new life. As excited as she is by this new start she realized that somehow along the way, men and relationships began consuming more of this new life than expected. I have to admit, sometimes I can relate. I have a lot of varied interests but at times I'll catch myself intentionally going through my past blogs to make sure my relationship topics don't overwhelm the rest of my stories. In analyzing myself and this weird obsession I came to this simple realization. What I relayed to my friend is that women are creatures who try to nurture and in nurturing we try to make sense of what makes no sense. It is our way of empathizing; of organizing in our brains the chaos that is the unknown...


Today I watched a movie called Temple Grandin. It's the life story of an autistic woman's struggle to make sense out of life. For Temple, life is a series of pictures. If she thinks about shoes, she remembers every shoe she's ever worn or seen (on people, in magazines, in stores, etc). To capture a complicated language, she makes some elaborate picture and to make sense of her environment, her photographic brain produces a pictured order. She does not process fear or the unknown in the way most do, she deals with anxiety in ways that are not the American norms, and her world has it's own set of definitions.

When Temple finds herself surrounded by cattle, like my friend and I with relationships and men, she must try to understand their world. She finds gentleness in their eyes and the chaos they feel she can relate to. Her mission becomes finding peace for these animals; a life that can be humane and a death that can be respected and calm!! (How do you not love this woman's respect of animal life!!)

Temple Grandin is truly inspirational! Not only does she accomplish life when life's world norms and rules don't make sense to her and she's considered "handicapped" but she forges ahead to help people catch a glimpse of her beauty, see her world, respect and honor her vision.

I know it can be said that all people are different. Our perceptions, our worldviews, our struggles, our experiences, our life stories, how we learn, teach and grow. Regardless of that, I've learned that we can all take a bit from each difference (the life of a blind person, an obese person, a genius, an autistic, a man, a woman, a homosexual, a minority, an atheist, an environmentalist, an activist, this list should be all encompassing). Watching Temple's amazing story, moved me to tears but more than that it confirms to me how soft the human heart can be in our desire to "understand" another.