It Not Easy Bein “Me”
When I hear the popular children’s song, “It’s Not Easy Bein’
Green,” sung by the lovable character, Kermit the Frog (a.k.a,
Jim Henson), my heart hears instead, “It’s Not Easy Bein’ Me.”
My thoughts turn to my son, Dustin and the many children with
disabilities who are often shunned by their fellow classmates
and peers.
Kermit sings, “It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary
things and people tend to pass you over cause you’re not
standing out like flashy sparkles in the water or stars in the
sky.” Often, our children’s disability interferes with their
ability to establish and maintain friendships. As a result, each
day is as lonely and isolated as the day before. Friendships
aren’t developed and our children blend in and go un-noticed;
further injuring their feelings of self-worth and putting them
at a higher risk for depression and suicide.
“But green’s the color of spring. And green can be cool and
friendly-like. And green can be big like an ocean or important
like a mountain or tall like a tree,” resounds Kermit. Can’t
each of us say this about our children? That each can be cool
and friendly, have a heart wide as an ocean, important like a
mountain and certainly tall in spirit like a tree.
Kermit continues, “When I think it could be nice being red or
yellow or gold or something much more colorful like that, but
when green is all there is to be, it could make you wonder why.
But why wonder, why wonder? I am green and it’ll do fine. It’s
beautiful! And I think it’s what I want to be.”
This last verse says it all! Teaching our children to accept who
they are will empower them to reach out to others and create
friendships. While they may start out as the only frog on the
lily pad, their acceptance of themselves will allow others to
see their inner beauty and join them in their pond of life.
