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The Normal One: Life with a Difficult or Damaged Sibling QUOTES

The Normal One: Life with a Difficult or Damaged Sibling QUOTES

1 " While some siblings accept, and even embrace, their destiny as members of the
'team,' others are (mostly privately) outraged, having experienced the obverse of the soothing stereotype in their own families. A graphic designer whose autistic brother tried to strangle her when they were children, and who struggled for years to get her parents to recognize the danger he presented, is acutely aware of the discrepancy between the illusion and the reality of damaged families: I'm trying to eradicate the Hallmark Hall of Fame Special myth - 'how I learned the meaning of life by having a disabled sibling.' The cover of Newsweek on autism had a beautiful blond good boy. People just want to look at the pretty kids on Jerry Lewis, the sanitized version, not the ugly cases like my brother. The severely disabled aren't telegenic. "

― Jeanne Safer , The Normal One: Life with a Difficult or Damaged Sibling

2 " Sober appreciation of what you have gained at so great a cost helps you feel consoled and proud. This recognition differs from the saccharine and self-obliterating exhortation to ‘count your blessings’ forced on many normal ones in childhood, because it is based on having enumerated your curses first. "

― Jeanne Safer , The Normal One: Life with a Difficult or Damaged Sibling