WHEELS FOR LIFE

Introductory Blog… As I sit here in front of my computer screen, I ponder what to write and where to begin? There is so much of myself to share. First off my name is Tamara Mesty Morgan. I am a three feet two, 48lb, 26 year old woman from Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I have had over 50 bone fractures and nine different surgeries. At birth I was diagnosed with a rare genetic bone disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta type III to be exact. For the movie savvy readers: the same bone condition of character Elijah Price in the film “Unbreakable”. Essentially crushed during my birth I arrived into this world with three broken ribs, a broken arm and leg. Being an extremely fragile infant compounding the financial instability of my family at the time. They were not able to care for me. I then grew up with the term “Boarder baby” inadvertently attached to my being. I later learned what this term meant. The term was given to the medically ill children of the 1980s living in state or city funded hospitals that were unable to live with their biological families. I spent my first five years in the New York Foundling Hospital. I did not realize the impact my childhood experiences would have on my life and the paths I would choose. Seeing my roommates suffer from obscure illnesses or from the sadness of their families never returning. Pretending to be a therapist at the subtle age of five is not something most children do. But for me pretending helped me get through. I would sit on my bed with my “Magic Slate” pad in hand and take notes as my nurses sat across from me and spoke of their everyday struggles. And I naively attempted to give my counsel. You can imagine the scribbles I wrote down and the counsel I gave. When I left the New York Foundling Hospital I embarked on another journey in the suburbs of Long Island. Where I was placed in temporary foster care with a loving family. Having siblings to play with and bedroom of my own at times felt surreal. How long would this last, when and how will I ever be reunited with my biological family? Are questions I often wondered deep down. The answers would come two years later when I was reunited with my biological family. With the tremendous help of a wonderful agency called New Alternatives for Children. Who helps families just like mine who has a child with a disability that is in need of multiple services. Some 25 years later; I am a NYU graduate with an MA in Art Therapy. On my way to making my then pretend play a reality. — Tamara M.