I’m collected by bus to go to Enable Ireland Adult services in East Gate in Little Island around nine.  I meet a lot of friends there.

Man United are my team I  have gone over a few times  we didn’t always win but just to be in Old Trafford is a wonderful experience.  Roy Keane was  a great player, and is also a great man.  I have met him on two occasions and I was struck by the fact that he doesn’t do the big celebrity thing. He does things quietly without a big fanfare- unlike Beckham!!! The tabloids might like to demonize him,but we know better.  He is a true Corkman.  True to his fans and true to himself.

I think there’s a perception out there that if you’re in a wheelchair that you’re not the full shilling or should I be saying ‘euro’ nowadays! I feel people tend not to take what we say very seriously. I was on a summer scheme once and this naïve girl who was a helper said”I don’t want to mind him”- “him” being me!! Non-verbal people like me have to try twice as hard to show we understand, and to be understood.  She totally forgot that I am blessed with a great pair of ears and have excellent hearing. I hope she has learned by now never to judge a book by the cover.

There are a lot of programmes being run in Enable Ireland such as Art, Drama, Home Management, Literacy, Personal and Social Development and Computers.   Personal Care is also a big part of the day as a lot of my friends and I cannot eat without help.  We have to depend a lot on other people, which makes it very difficult to be independent.