“Creative play is like a spring that bubbles up from deep within a child.” ~Joan Almon
When I first got a three-wheel electric scooter (an Amigo) for long distances 28 years ago, it made me really nervous. I was used to walking. What would people think? Then I called several friends and asked them how having a friend on a scooter would be for them. They said stuff like, “Hey, we can go more places; we can move faster: and you’re still sexy!” Then we started to test it out and go places. When we saw a buddy’s mom at the art museum, I was self-conscious. She was simply happy to see me. When we went Christmas shopping at the mall, I realized that I could have made big bucks selling rides on my scooter to enthralled kids whose eyes suddenly lit up, faces beamed, and fingers pointed when I zoomed by! Some children even delightedly ran after me with their embarrassed parents charging behind, swept into the vacuum of their kid’s sudden crazy surge of energy! (Oh, if I had only worn a Santa hat!)
I have learned that an electric scooter has a social image akin to that of a golf cart. It’s positive and related to having fun. It’s part of living with polio. People don’t feel sad when they see a scooter. They feel curious and playful. They want it to go fast. They smile at me more quickly. Now when I go out, I depend on my scooter full time. Actually, it would make me more nervous NOT to have one, because I not only critically need it to fully function, I go everywhere in it. It’s an essential part of my freedom as a disabled, but quite healthy person. (Actually it keeps me very healthy, but that’s another post!)
As my perspective has changed over the years, one thought that I now have about scooter-benefits is that having a scooter can help bring back the joys of childhood. Even more important– those joys can be shared with the special kids in our lives. It’s easy to play on a scooter. Kids understand and can immediately relate to scooters. And if, by chance or by design, you can have one ready for each of you –often Ebay sells used ones at very low prices– that’s even better. As Ward Cleaver said years ago,”You’re never too old to do goofy stuff!”
“Kids love watching adults act like children. It’s that spirit they can relate to.” –James Roday
I have been lucky enough to have two great young people in my life during the last decade. They are the children of an old friend. We have been so many places together with me on a scooter. We “walk ‘n roll” side by side. We’ve spent summer days romping at Cedar Point Amusement Park, gazing at downtown Ann Arbor’s street art, sightseeing on the shores of Lake Michigan, and being water-sprayed at the base of Niagara Falls. Back at my house, we’ve pulled out my old spare scooter and two of us on scooters have raced around the condo development, chased each other a quarter of a mile up to the corner for ice cream, or lightheartedly blown soap bubbles at each other then whooshed the elusive orbs high into the March winds. We frolic! And that is a wonderful way for our hearts and spirits to sparkle and soar.
Kids are so good for adults. They help us stay young. And in turn, we are good for them. Youngsters these days are “absolutely starved for positive adult contact.” Remember how that felt? Didn’t you just adore the adults in your life who were positive and who sincerely wanted to be with you, play with you and listen to you? Electric scooters can serve as one great tool for connecting with and loving the kids in our lives. And as we break with our mundane adult routines, stop, shift gears, then enter into our favorite kids’ worlds, something happens to us. We have the opportunity to renew and be permeated by the power of our own joy, creativity, and enthusiasm.
Do you have a story about how a scooter has helped you enjoy the kids in your life?
Want to share it?
Would love to hear from you.
Choose to comment below…
My favorite scooter company
P.S. Here is a transcript of that PBS show:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/illegal-street-art-inspires-new-york-city-redesign-accessibility-icon/
Thanks!
I love the new accessible parking/wheelchair accessible signs adopted by New York state: http://www.stargazette.com/story/news/local/new-york/2014/07/25/handicapped-disabled-accessible-sign-change/13172317/
Really shows mobility and get-up-and-go created by motorized devices such as scooters, etc, AND specifies user friendly locations. The PBS News Hour did a piece about the new look in last weekend’s show. A very nice image!
I really like the image too. It’s full of life and energy. I hope it becomes a common sight across the country soon.
Zoom—!
Sun
Thanks. I am very ambivalent about taking that next step. Using a cane now, possibly graduating to a walker soon. Thanks Again.
When you are ready, you will know what to do. Onward and upward!
I so enjoy your post today, Sunny. It reminds me of a visit to a British zoo with a friend and her two kids several years back. They were six and eight at the time. I used one of the zoo’s mobility scooters and had the most fun watching the kids tear around on it. The zoo did not have a “speed limit” for the scooter, so it got a workout. Luckily, I was able to use it some of the time 🙂
On another topic … You have inspired me to look at Amigo scooters. I’ve gone the Medicare route twice and have been denied twice even though I can barely walk with my PPS. So, I’ve decided to treat myself to a scooter. What do you think of the Amigo TravelMate ? Many thanks.
Zoos are great places for scooters! I have never specifically tried a TravelMate, but I just called the company to see if I could test one out. Stay tuned…
Thanks, Sunny. I’ll look forward to hearing what you think. I’ve checked with my CPA, and I can write it off on my income taxes as long as I have a doctor write a prescription. So, I think I’ll go that route. Have a great day! Karen
Hurrah!
Sunny, the boy in the pictures reminds me of Harry Potter! He sure looked like he was having fun! What a great blog- I never thought about those scooters- they do indeed look like a lot of fun for old and young alike! I will look for you at the Mall giving scooter rides to the kids as their parents finish their Christmas shopping!
Such fun we have!
I am in the process of looking to purchase my first scooter, I have always fought tooth and nail not to have help walking, but we’re planning an overseas trip – to America – and have realised that I won’t cope without it. So reading your posts have really helped make me understand that it will probably increase my independence not take it away.
Thanks
Absolutely! Especially in American places where the sidewalks are smooth and the curb cuts are “plenty!” Sounds like you may want a travel scooter?
I really enjoy reading your blog and will be waiting for your next update. I appreciate all the work you put into this site, helping out others with your fun and creative works.
Self Balancing Scooter
I got my first scooter in 2001, only because I absolutely had to: I was working in a managerial role in a huge university hospital, when the nurses went on strike, managers needed to make rounds and I was no longer able to walk enough to do that. I was so embarrassed initially but it turned out to be so much fun and I got a lot of positive attention. Soon after, my husband found a like-new used 4 wheel scooter which I have used to walk my dogs for 13 years. I still use a 3 wheeler for shopping, etc. but the 4 wheeler is my outdoors scooter. My 2 grandsons and many nieces and nephews have always loved my scooters and it’s especially fun to watch the babies grow to an age where suddenly the scooter makes their eyes light up and their arms reach up to me for a ride. It’s been a really fun part of living with polio for me! thanks for the blog!
What a joyful story! Happy kids and happy canines too! Thanks for sharing it with us all.
Yes, my dogs love “scooter walking” for the same reason as I, it’s fast!!
Thank you Penny! Medicare payment gets complicated. You’d need to check with your physician and the specific scooter company. Also the folks at Amigo are quite knowledgeable. You could call them in Bridgeport, MI.
Sunny, you look fabulous on your scooter. I think it is a very fashionable and fun way to get around. When I taught yoga to folks at a CCRC (retirement community) I could tell that the folks with a scooter had way more fun! If I ever need one in the future, I will remember how cool it is. My RA for now still lets me walk. But who knows what comes down the pike? Does Medicare pay for any of that scooter? Love to you.