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The Time of a Disabled Person Is Not Yours to Waste

Quit wasting my time, world.

By Iria Vasquez-PaezPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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Despite the many disabilities there are out there because of this polluted, godforsaken, hell-hole, and wretched planet of a world that sits on the Orion Arm in the Milky Way Galaxy, disabled people’s time is not yours to waste. Sometimes we have bad days. Those of us with chronic illness intimately know that we have bad days and goodness knows that happens. Just sleeping through the night for me is a huge accomplishment. I don’t think I know what that’s like, period. I had symptoms of pediatric schizophrenia since I was a one-year-old.

Time is something we entrepreneurs have in common. Writing business plans is a chunk of time. Writing in general encompasses much of my day. My time is valuable. If somebody changes an appointment I have right before Pantheacon, you are pissing off a pagan who values time. I’m never late to things. Just because I’m Spanish, I’m not late, period. Being pagan also gives me no excuse to be late. My time is valuable to me. I vowed not to be like my family who is unbelievably late to things which to me is just unbelievably inconsiderate. This is why I hate being late and thus on my own time, I’m not bloody late. Period.

I’m trying to become better at my time management, period. I’m seeing how long it takes me to write 1000 words. I want to make sure that I finish my book that I want to publish. I work around doctor’s appointments. That insurance sales gig I found has flexible part-time hours. I am never late to anything because I respect people’s time. Period. It is me who gets my time disrespected simply because I’m a type 1 diabetic and have other disabilities. I call ahead if I’m late.

I believe in telling people if you are going to be late. Other disabled people have disrespected my time. My time is not yours to waste. I do not volunteer to help you expecting to have my time disrespected. Disabled people are treated like they lack value, as if their time is something to be wasted. I have had one too many persons disrespect my time. Like that one guy from one company that didn’t tell me my writing wasn’t good enough for him. He wasted my time lurking on Skype making his presence known but not talking to me. I got mad at him for not having the balls to respect my time.

I’m sick to death of medical clinics wanting to waste my time as well. Oh, sure, my time has no value. I’m disabled. I have multiple chronic illnesses. I don’t think I know what sleeping the whole night is like. So my time is easy to waste because I just carry myself like a self-pitying martyr don’t I? That was sarcasm, don’t waste my time. How many ways do I have to say it? I do not piss my time away like some people say I do. From somebody who does nothing with his whole day, and another time waster can’t seem to get herself from home to the light rail station in a timely way.

My time is not yours to waste. If I don’t feel like hanging out one day, I have a good reason, don’t disrespect my boundaries. No means no. No seriously means no. Just because I have a disability doesn’t mean my time is yours to waste. My appointments are not something to be pushed around by. My time is valuable. Do not waste it. I do not want to waste my time anymore since my illness is treated and I’m stable. A disabled person’s time is not yours to waste.

humanity
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About the Creator

Iria Vasquez-Paez

I have a B.A. in creative writing from San Francisco State. Can people please donate? I'm very low-income. I need to start an escape the Ferengi plan.

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