Jot down the first thing that comes to your mind.
Always say thank you to the people that help you, especially if it’s your mom or dad or your sibling.
Author: Marie Nicole Zimmerle
Hi I’m Marie Nicole. I’m 43 and I have cerebral palsy. I love sharing the story of what God has done in my Life and I hope I can use my story to inspire and encourage you to follow him and his plans for you and your life.
Describe a decision you made in the past that helped you learn or grow.
I have been answering these questions on my podcast
Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: Describe a decision that you made that helped you learn and grow https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/encouragement-with-marie-/episodes/Describe-a-decision-that-you-made-that-helped-you-learn-and-grow-e2ihsoc
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
In ten years, I’ll be 52. I hope I will continue to grow in my self-acceptance and continue to advocate for the disability community. I also hope that I am able to find opportunities to speak to groups in person about the journey that I’ve been on, and of course I want to continue to Encouragement Notes.
What are 5 everyday things that bring you happiness?
Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: Things that make me happy https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/encouragement-with-marie-/episodes/Things-that-make-me-happy-e2ib563
What’s the most fun way to exercise?
Anybody follows me or knows me personally knows that I think the most fun way to exercise is dance!
What book could you read over and over again?
I’m not much of a physical book reader, but the books that I would listen to over and over again are
Being Heuman by Judy Heuman and narrated by Ali Stroker
The chance to fly by Ali stroker and Stacey davidowitz
Narrated by Ali stroker
Cut Loose by Stacey Davidowitz and Ali Stroker, narrated by Ali Stroker
How would you improve your community?
The things I would change in my community would be accessibility and language. All people deserve the right to move freely without having to struggle and all people deserve to be called by their name
How have you adapted to the changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic?
The down time that I had during the height of the pandemic it has definitely changed me. I had a lot of time to think and challenge my beliefs about having a disability. I started to watch YouTube videos of how fantastic using a wheelchair and connecting with the disability community could be
This is my last week being 41 years old. If you had asked me even one year ago what I would be doing this year and into the next year of my life, I would not have guessed that I would be participating in a board that focuses on public policy and change-making in the disability community. It’s taken me a ton of time to get to where I am today, And now that I’m here, I hope God continues to bring me forward on this journey.
During today’s meeting, we were tasked with answering the question: What vocabulary needs to change In our community and society?
My answer was that we need to work on and eventually stop using the term able- bodied to describe someone who does not have a disability. Instead, we need to start using the term non-disabled to describe someone who does not appear to have a disability. Furthermore, we need to be mindful of when, where, and how we use terminology because we might meet someone who has a hidden disability but is uncomfortable talking about it or identifying with the community. Lastly, the most important thing to remember is that anyone we meet who is disabled or not deserves to be called by their name, and that is it.
As I have said many times before, for half of my life, I tried to run away from my identity as a disabled woman because the way that questions and terminology made me feel was awful. I also believe that I fell into depression because I lost my best friend, Noel when I was 21 years old. She was 24, and when we talk that school, we talked about how we would change the world for the better for people with disabilities. I miss her every day, and I know that she is watching over me as I step into this God-given assignment and go forward in life.
How would you rate your confidence level?
In a perfect world, I would say it’s perfect, but it varies from task to task. I tend to internalize the opinions of my loved ones instead of letting their words be their responsibility alone.
I need to start tracking my little wins in my journal on my phone because I know that even though. I struggle a whole lot not every thing is bad
Encouragement Notes Podcast 