I was watching some "In Search of" episodes last night. It is a great show from the late 70s and early 80s that is narrated by Leonard Nimoy. It deals with mysterious phenomena such as the paranormal , unsolved mysteries, etc. I was watching an episode about the life of Joseph Carey Merrick(5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) nicknamed the Elephant man. I had seen the movie "The Elephant Man" starring John Hurt and Sir Anthony Hopkins as a child and it is such a sad sad story. I cried while watching that episode of In Search Of. Joseph Merrick either suffered from a disease called Neurofibromatosis type 1 or Proteus Syndrome or a combination of both. You can read about his life at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_man He died at the age of 27 in London Hospital. When he slept he had to sit up and bend his knees and then rest his head on his knees because of the weight of his head but when they found him he was lying down and the cause of death was thought to be asphyxia but when an autopsy was done on the body it was found that he died of a dislocated neck.

While thinking about him last night and all he went through in his life I started to think maybe my life isn't so bad and I decided I have a lot to learn from this wonderful human being and I decided I am going to get a binding of him. This poor man went through Hell though it was no fault of his own. Just because he was born with a disfiguring disease. I used to &$*#! and moan about how I was teased in school for different things. But what this poor man what he must have went through was unthinkable.

I can't help but think if he had born today plastic surgery would have helped him live a more normal life. I was telling my daughter about him today and she asked to see him and my mom said don't show her pictures she will have nightmares. That made me so angry. I told my mom he was a human being not a monster!!! He wasn't some serial killer. He had a disfiguring disease that was no fault of his own. Sad that even this day in age people think of this poor man as a monster!!!! It makes me sick to my stomach!! Rest in Peace Joseph!!!

I know I saw that movie too and it is so sad that back then people thought that anyone who had a disability, whether it was physical or mental, they would be very cruel to them, saying that either God did this to them because they had done something wrong, or the parents had, or that they were somehow evil!!!!! Sad to say some people still view it that way today!!!! But it has come a long ways from how it use to be!!!!

starfire :dragons::