I wonder how Bob is doing now that Michael Jackson is gone? Bob, a friendly man with down syndrome loves Michael Jackson. I've worked with him on and off throughout the years. At dances he will always request some Michael. Whether its Beat It, Thriller, Billy Jean; Bob is on the dance floor doing a one-man Michael Jackson routine. He has the hat, glove, jacket, all the CD's. He practices his dance moves in his bedroom. At the dances he always does Michael moves. He loves it. Sometimes for the Halloween Dance he dresses up like Michael Jackson.
Lots of the staff think its cute. They try and get him excited so he'll dance. They taunt him saying, "Do Michael? Please?" "Why won't you dance like Michael?" Sometimes it embarrasses him and then he doesn't want to dance. He gets mad and starts talking to himself. I hate it when they do that. I've even tried to tell the staff how I feel but it doesn't really help. They just say "he's fine, no big deal." and walk away. He has such a love for Michael that I think they hurt his feelings. Often we don't give people with disabilities the credit they deserve. We try to get them to do things they don't want to do. We try to make jokes at their expense, make them do "tricks".
I do love it when he dances like Michael. I love it because I know how much Michael means to Bob. How much he's tried to emulate him. I know he has all the tapes and has watched them forever.
I asked Bob, once, a few years back, what he thought about Michael and the accusations that he abused children. Bob stormed off, he wouldn't answer me. In fact, if I remember correctly, he didn't talk to me the next time I saw him either. I think he mumbled under his breath but that's it. Obviously, Bob wasn't going to believe the charges. He wasn't about to believe the hype. A true fan. When others didn't believe in Michael, Bob was there for him. In his own corner of the world, Bob was a true fan.
I think Bob has something going for him that most other people don't...faith. He believes in what is right, what he knows is true. Despite evidence to the contrary, Bob believes that Michael Jackson was a good soul. He admires him and isn't afraid to admit it (except when he knows others are making fun of him). I also admire Bob because of his conviction. He never stopped being a faithful fan! How do you stand up for what you believe in even in the face of great distaste or public persecution?
People with disabilities are so often persecuted. Maybe Michael understood that about children and people with disabilities. Maybe that's why Bob is such a fan because he knew how Michael felt. Bob understands how Michael felt when no one understood him, that they were making fun of him. They understood each other, perhaps share a common bond. Recently people have described Michael as almost childlike. People with disabilities are always referred to as childlike. Neither is the case, more often than not both people with disabilities and Michael were ostracized from their community, misunderstood, and underestimated. Just as Michael was not a child neither are people with disabilities. More often than not, they know more than the rest of us.
I wonder how Bob is feeling today? How is he grieving? Maybe I will send him a card tomorrow.
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