Today is National Celiac Disease Awareness Day and I felt like a heel of a blogger to not have any content to write in honor of our big day. Then as the day went by and something came up that now has me typing away just a few hours before our national awareness day is over, but hopefully it will be food for thought that will spur changes necessary in time for next years Celiac Disease Awareness Day.
Today I was invited to go to a MOPS group that starts tomorrow. I was once apart of MOPS and even involved in the leadership of this group at my church almost 2 years ago. When I first went I was pregnant with my daughter and hadn't learned about my healthy issues with food yet. When I left the group my daughter was turning one and I was just beginning my new life style and my daughter's issues with gluten were still unknown. If was difficult those few months when I was still attending MOPS and had gone GF. I was on the planning committee by then and I remember requesting that everyone who brings food put a list of what was in each item they brought. My request fell on deaf ears.
Please understand I have nothing against MOPS, I'm just using this as an example.
When I left MOPS I joined another women's group that was a Bible study. I really enjoyed that group. I loved sitting with women who were well seasoned in their years and gleaning from them all sorts of Biblical and motherly wisdom. It was a small group and it was easy for me to just bring my own food for me and my daughter and no one raised an eyebrow if I just had fruit on my plate. The childcare class was small too and it was easy for me to control her diet while in that class. The people who watched the kids were often my friends who already are aware of her dietary guidelines. I had already gone to great extent to educate the children's minstry department at my church on gluten issues and what was ok to give my child for snack time, you can read more about that here. However, this other group is currently on break for the next few months till a new teacher is found.
So here I am faced with an invitation to join another MOPS group at another church. As much fun as the last group was and all the great friendships that blossomed from my last experience I find myself hesitant to even try this new group. Why? I really don't want to take the time to have to educate and fight with childcare givers at another church over what gluten is. Yes, their is a chance they may already know this and be prepared, but I am really willing to risk it? Do I really want to pass 3/4 of the buffet table because I can't eat hardly anything there? Yes, I could educate so many people on celiac disease and spread the word; however, I find myself afraid of what kind of response I will get.
As great as the information and choices we have available to us in this modern day when it comes to our food availability, certain social situations still make me nervous. Another example is that me and my husband want to homeschool our kids. As I read about how some schools are make it a rule that only school lunches be eaten to ensure that all children get a healthy lunch, I cringe at the thought. No homemade sack lunches? What will kids with food allergies do?! It just adds to the reasons why I want to homeschool my children, besides religious reasons.
Am I really willing to keep my daughter from makes new friends and have new fun experiences all because I'm worried about her getting glutened by sharing a snack with a new friend? Have I really become that over protective mother?! Some of you may understand my concerns. I know my non-gluten free friends wouldn't understand, but then again they don't have to deal with three days worth of runny diapers if their child eats one gold fish cracker.
So I have a dream! I have a dream that one day little gluten free kids can sit side by side with non-gluten free kids and share a snack that will be healthy and nutritious for both of them and no one will get sick. I have a dream that schools and churches and daycare centers will already be well educated and prepared to serve gluten free and other allergy free foods to children without segregation. I have a dream that parents and children who live a gluten free life style will no longer get odd disapproving looks from strangers at the check out lane. That those who eat gluten free and non-gluten free can dine and celebrate in harmony without anyone feeling left out or singled out. That their will be freedom!
Ok, I got a bit cared away, but I'm not off base. We have come a long way, but we still have along way to go. My dream is that someday when I mom of a celiac kid gets invited for a play date or takes their child to school for the first time that they won't be any dietary fears whatsoever. Whether or not I will try out this new MOPS group tomorrow is still uncertain. I have so many reservations that it almost doesn't seem worth it to go because of my fears, yet what kind of pioneer of the celiac disease would I be if I didn't give it an honest try. Who knows I might be pleasantly surprised. If I do go, I'm bringing the Glutino pretzels for snack time, just in case.
No comments:
Post a Comment