While shopping and walking around at a store recently, I once again used my superpower.  It was amazing!  Poof, I was invisible! 

My ability to remain unseen comes up so often that other superheroes like Batman or Superman could probably learn a thing or two from me.  I think I am called to use my superpower more often than those superheroes, and, as they say, practice makes perfect. So I am just about at the top of my perfection ceiling.

Here is how it works: I will be moving along, looking at something, and people will walk right in front of me. It’s very much as if I am not even there. Sometimes they rush to get in front of me, as apparently, they feel that I am too slow.

Then what often ends up happening is that I run into the people who have rushed in front of me. They invariably say something like, “Oh, you’re fine,” or some other phrase meant to make me feel as though our bumping into each other was my fault.

No, dear readers, it is not my fault when you speed up to get in front of me and then I run into you. At best, that reflects your poor planning skills. At worst, it is inconsiderate and maybe even dangerous.

Though I sometimes use a walker when I’m out, nothing beats my trusty wheelchair for true invisibility. People really don’t see me then!  Maybe it’s too taxing for them to look down a bit?  I am not sure why using a wheelchair frequently causes people to ignore me; all I know is that it happens. Getting around in a wheelchair is much easier for me than walking, but I always have to factor in, and prepare for, the invisibility factor.

A friend once told me that people ignore me so it won’t seem as though they are staring at me. Maybe she’s right.

I often leave these situations wondering if I one day I’ll be able to put down my cape for good. I’d happily surrender my superpower if it meant I could walk (or roll) around noticed, like most everyone else. Maybe someday…

Denise Blackburn-Smith was born with cerebral palsy. She is an intake specialist at Franklin County DD.