Emotions of travelling

Montreal Olympic tower sans WC view

My name is Marjorie and I met Josh a while back as I know his sister. I am a support worker in Toronto providing support and care to those who have physical and/or developmental disabilities. I have worked in schools, daycare, nursery schools, day programs, group homes and as an attendant. My love lies in community and those that live in it. For 26 years I provided respite to parents, while providing camps, activities, and adventurous lives to their children. I am now a live-in caregiver to a young woman. I still keep in contact with all the families I’ve worked for and go back to my old clients as much as I can.

My travel experience comes from traveling with those families. Being the person to take care of their child so we can make it through safety and in a somewhat easy manner. It is a lot to handle with kids, all the forms, lines, whisking through an airport, boarding and then often giving over the mobility device your child relies on, hoping it comes back in one piece. Often this all after you’ve carried them onto the plane and taken off every piece of the mobility device that could be broken, spilled on or is decorative and stuffed it into an overhead bin. I’m not saying flight attendants don’t help, they do. Its often just calming to have someone with you that can sit with your child, let you sit while they explain the chair to handlers, take your kid to the washroom or anything else. Traveling is exhausting in any case. Add a mobility device, in-accessible washrooms, making sure your child is content, caring for them if they’re not, or can’t tell you and hoping you get to your destination safely, with all luggage, mobility device and any extra equipment you may have.

Paris…to be continued