I wasn't always a lion

     I'm starting this blog because I want to tell you the beginning of my story, the story about what it is like growing up with a Speech Impediment.
     To start from the beginning, I remember the first time I was laughed at was during my English class in 6th grade. These two boys that I sat next to asked me to say "The cat is in the bag"...I remember trying to play it cool and asking "Why?" they then kept asking and so I tried. I stuttered terribly and one of the boys said "See, I told you she can't talk." I began to cry right then and there, but I wouldn't tell the teacher on them. I kept it in and decided in that moment to stay strong.

     The bars in front of the lion represent the negative words people told me or the things I thought about myself. Until I was in 8th grade I believed I couldn't speak or that I couldn't order food for myself. People always did things for me and I was just floating along with it. I kept pretty quite in school, but I sure did listen a lot! I observed almost everything and the thoughts I began to have were so deep that the only way I knew how to let them run free was by using the internet. I knew nobody would be patient enough to listen to me, so I just kept them to myself.

     Another few reasons as to why I felt like I was trapped in a cage was because each time I opened my mouth, people's perspectives of who I was seemed to change instantly. They saw a Stutter and automatically jumped to the assumption that I was slow or had a disability. To be completely honest, it pissed me off. You see once they begin to treat you like you're different, they also treat you less than an average human being. They see a struggle and believe they must treat you like a child. That you aren't capable of doing anything for yourself.