By Mackenzie Madison
<[email protected]>

Ok, I must admit, I am a reality show addict. Not “reality shows” like “Laguna Beach,” but reality shows like “Survivor,” “American Idol,” “The Amazing Race” and “The Biggest Loser.” I don’t think I look at these shows the same way most people do. But I think this season has been the best, especially “The Amazing Race” and “American Idol.”

On both “The Amazing Race” and “American Idol” this season, there have been competitors with disabilities. On “American Idol,” there was a blind man named Scott. Although he was not always the favorite of the week, his performance always stood out. Not only did he have amazing vocals, but he also played the piano. Since he couldn’t see to move around the stage, when the cast would do a group vocal performance, he would always be playing the piano. But as the season progressed, he gained the confidence to dance around the stage with the other competitors. Unfortunately, he was voted off a few weeks ago.

While on “The Amazing Race,” there is a deaf man named Luke who competes with his mother, Margie. “The Amazing Race” is hard enough to start off with because of language barriers due to the competitiors constant traveling, but to add in the extra factor that Luke is deaf makes the competition especially hard. But since the race began, Margie and Luke have been front runners the whole time.

These people have made me think. People who are free from disabilities are so lucky. We don’t have to go through the everyday challenges that they do. I’ve never heard a disabled person complain, but I feel like we complain all the time. In fact, according to the Web site “a complain free world,” the average person complains 15-30 times a day. Honestly, what do we have to complain about? Americans are the most blessed people in the world. And I’m not pointing fingers; I do my fair share of complaining too, but it’s over things that in an hour, I won’t even remember being dissatisfied with.

These people have to deal with their disabilities everyday, and they don’t complain about it. Instead, they persevere. Luke is a deaf man who communicates with people who don’t even speak English, and don’t know how to sign, and Scott is a blind man who can play the piano. I must admit, I tried playing with my eyes closed, and its not as easy as it looks, and I’ve played for a while.

I think that people with disablilites are more likely to overcome problems. They want to prove that they’re just as good as everyone else, but I think they’ve proved they’re even better. They don’t take things for granted like most people do. They go above and beyond to prove that they can do it, and I think we all need to learn from them. Mackenzie Madison is a reporter for the HiLite. Contact her at [email protected].