Saturday, October 31, 2009

The Headless Horsemen -- Please Don't Stare

AFTERNOON:

As you can guess, the Headless Horseman had plenty of issues. Being without a head is something that would challenge anyone's self worth.

We know how it is with the smallest blemish or flaw. Even with acne, warts, rashes, and bandages from minor surgery, you feel conspicuous.

It's not really true that the whole world revolves around you, or that people are giving you that much attention, but you still think it.

Multiply those feelings by a million and you'll still be far from knowing what a guy who's completely without a head has to be feeling.

I've been in enough conversations with the Headless Horseman to know that this extraordinarily massive blemish is not easy to live with.

Of course it has marked his whole life since losing his head, turning him to the bad for quite a while, making him act out in a bad way.

But try to go without a head and see how it is! Or just imagine. You show up at a restaurant, a hotel, even church, and everyone stares.

No one treats you the same. Naturally that's going to eat away at your sense of self-worth, with your self-esteem taking a terrible hit.

I myself had a pretty serious fear of the Headless Horseman at first. But in my defense, he was the first headless person I'd worked with.

As I said before, I started working with him out of fear of dying. Then I found the whole key was this, to treat him as any other person.

That means we share a common humanity. My belief is there's good in everyone. I knew he could make gigantic strides if I treated him right.

So we got down to it. I guided him but he changed a few of his thinking patterns. He would try to stay positive, affirming himself daily.

I coached him along to understand how shocking it is for people to see a headless person. So with understanding, he was in greater control.

Then day by day, he raised his spirits and now he has greater confidence. He hasn't overcome it entirely. He knows these things take time.

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