Happy World Down Syndrome Day!

A Day to Celebrate the Special Uniqueness of Trisomy 21

March 21 = 03-21 = trisomy 21 = Down Syndrome

My youngest son has a superpower. His superpower is known as ‘Down Syndrome’, though there is nothing down about it. It confers upon him the ability to accept people for who they are, with no judgement, and with lots of love and hugs. This is because he has an extra chromosome in his cells; the ‘love chromosome’.

I hold my son as the gold standard for his acceptance of every person as being of equal inherent value. I see this in many people with Down Syndrome.

My wife and son are touring all the classrooms in his school today to educate everyone about Down Syndrome. My son is proudly wearing his shirt, which says, “Homie with an extra chromie“. Tonight, my family will be going to a big party being put on by our regional Down Syndrome Society. I am looking forward to lots of hugs and being surrounded by a massive number of people who will accept everyone regardless of whether they hold any differences of opinions on any matter. [I wish so very much that my workplace could learn to be as genuinely inclusive as these great folks.]

Fun fact: the official colours for Down Syndrome are blue and yellow (yes, like the Ukrainian flag).

Today, my family and I would like to wish everyone who has trisomy 21 and all those touched by their lives, a very happy World Down Syndrome Day.

Update: I just got back from the party. It reminded me of another superpower conferred by an extra copy of chromosome #21; DANCING !

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