- What did you guys think when you saw me walking?
- You look like a pirate like that.
(laughing)
(soft music)
- Hi.
- I'm Carolyn.
- I'm Makayla.
- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you, too.
- Do you guys know why you're here today?
- No.
- Nope.
- What does this make you think?
- I see these at Walmart.
- What are they used for, do you know?
- They're used for people who have broken legs.
- Do I look like I have a broken leg?
Do I have a cast anywhere?
- No. - No.
- No?
Okay, but I'm not walking very normal, am I?
- Nope.
- So, what do you think is my medical condition?
- Is there something wrong
with your feet maybe, or your legs?
- Close.
- Motor skills?
- Also motor skills, that's also involved.
- I'm not sure.
- It's called cerebral palsy.
Have you guys ever heard of that before?
- No. - No.
- Okay, so that's the thing that you're born with
that makes your brain and your body
don't communicate very well, so my brain will send signals
to my body and then my body won't do
what my brain is telling it to do.
So mostly it affected my balance
and my hands and stuff like that.
- Mhmm.
- Usually I associate cerebral palsy
with not really being able to talk that well.
- Okay.
- But, yeah, it seems like you've got good control.
- Yeah, so there's like all different levels.
Some people, like you said, they can't really talk,
and they're in a wheelchair all the time.
Other people don't even need a cane.
- What is that thing for though?
- This...
- I have that at home.
- You have one too?
- Yeah, but it's red.
- What do you use it for?
- To grab things
when it's really high.
- Yeah, that's what I use it for too,
because I can't stand on the step stool,
so if I have to reach something
that's up high, I can just pull it down with this.
- So how do you get cerebral palsy?
Is it like a bug or something, or what happens?
- No, it's like, when you're being born,
you just don't get enough oxygen
and then you have brain damage basically.
- Oh. - Oh, no.
- Physically, what's the hardest part
about having cerebral palsy so far?
- The fact that I can't walk very far.
I'll get like all kinds of pain and be super tired.
I fall a lot and break bones, so I have that wheelchair.
- So if you're on a hill, how do you stay in place?
- Well, I can show you, do you wanna?
Usually what I do if I'm on a big hill and I get tired,
I can either hit the breaks like that
or I can just hold it.
- What are these, they're like little wheels on the back?
What are those for?
- Those.
- Wow!
- Wheelies.
- Nice!
- And for going up curbs, because if you try
to go up a curb and it's too steep.
- You could pop a wheely.
- That's cool.
- Different strokes for different folks.
(instrumental music)
- Have you ever been sitting down on a bench or something
and kind of like just trying to catch your breath
and then people come up to you being like, "Are you okay?"
- Yeah, I've had that happen before.
The two reactions I get most often are
that people don't make eye contact at all,
like it's contagious or something.
They're gonna get it by looking at me, I don't know.
Or they'll be like really invasive.
I'll just have strangers walk up to me
and start asking me my medical history,
and I'm like I don't know you.
I've never met you before, why are you staring at me?
And then, like all up in my business.
Sometimes I can feel like I'm a zoo exhibit.
I can charge money for walking
down the street because people are.
- That's a decent idea right there.
(laughing)
Every stare is a nickel, you'd make a fortune.
- I wish.
- I hope we're not being too intrusive.
- Oh, no you're fine, and this a little bit different,
because I agreed to come here and
so this is something that's expected.
- So if I see someone with a disability like you
should I help them?
- Sometimes if they look like, you know,
they're going up a hill and it's really steep,
and they look like they're tired,
then you can ask them, you can say,
"Hey, would you like some help?"
But if they say, "No," then you need
to respect that they said, "No."
The worst is when people will come up,
when I'm in the wheelchair,
and people just start pushing me without asking,
and that's the same as picking someone up
and carrying them somewhere without even asking permission.
- Wait, like strangers would push you?
- Yeah, they assume that that's what I would want.
- People are just.
- Did your parents give you a ton
of support when you were growing up?
- I had a lot of surgeries, so I had
to go to physical therapy and occupational therapy,
and then I did something called hippotherapy,
which is therapy on a horse.
- Aw man, I like to ride horses,
but I am not old enough to ride horses.
- Oh.
- Because you might fall off and slip.
- Yeah, well that's why you wear the helmet.
- Can people ride on elephants?
- Yes, I've ridden on an elephant before.
- I'm like, ah that's scary.
- What do they smell like?
- Closest thing I would say they smell like is wet dog.
But not quite the same.
- Yuck.
- Yeah.
- So what's your job?
Where do you work?
- I write books.
- Oh, cool! - Nice.
What are they about?
- My newest one is like a children's bedtime story,
and then a book of poetry that came out last year.
- I write books at first grade.
I write about penguins and baking
and different stuff I like.
- Oh, that's cool.
Do the penguins bake in your books?
- No, they don't know how to bake or they'd be crazy.
- Can you write about people with the problems you have?
- No, I haven't written a book about that yet,
but I did write an essay for a magazine
about what it's like to have a disability.
- Oh.
Thank you Carrolyn for teaching us
about people who have problems like you.
(laughing)
- You're welcome.
Hi, my name is Carolyn Agee, thanks
for watching Kids Meet, to find out more
about cerebral palsy, check out the link below.
- Thank you so much, it was really nice to meet you.
- Really great to meet you.
- See you later.
- See you next time, wherever I see you.
- Drop the mic.
(laughing)
Oh wait, it's on me.