Inclusion! What's In It For Everyone?

Matthew Weinger

I moved to suburban Detroit from out of state toward the end of fifth grade, when I was ten years old.  I found myself as the much maligned new kid amongst 75 or so children who’d been together since kindergarten.  What easily could have meant disaster for my self-esteem instead became a love affair with my new friends.  I was almost immediately embraced, welcomed, and included by Micah and his peers, a group known as the Circle of Friends.

It turns out that being the new kid is a blessing in disguise.  I’m sure Micah at the time thought little of what he had done.  But look, that’s the whole point!  To him I was merely a new friend.  A quick display of friendliness and compassion on his part meant the entire world to someone else, that being me.  I won’t ever forget that day…Circle of Friends more than opened my eyes; it opened my heart and opened my mind.

I no longer see the world the way I used to see it.  No more cool kids and weirdos or jocks and dorks. No more retards.  Micah, his family and his circle have taught me to view and accept people as individuals without classifications.  Just because someone stutters doesn’t mean they aren’t worthy of conversation.  A blind man would certainly enjoy being read aloud to.  Someone who can’t run so fast may still get satisfaction from being a member of a track and field team.  A child who has poor penmanship could well be a magnificent writer.  Luckily, the standards by which society measures people are evolving, if ever for the better…

Thanks to Micah and his Circle of Friends, I feel as though I am a better friend, a better person, leading a better life.