| MEDITATION FROM A MOTHER MEETING AT THE PLACE OF THE HEART: by Mary Reilly |
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Jellybean has given us all a great gift—the opportunity to share with the world the
power of those with special needs.
For they are great teachers. They invite us to be aware of what is most important
here—unconditional love, compassion, and understanding.
Their gifts are almost always overlooked, their voices unheard. They are, for the most
part, unknown. My cry for my child has always been: Will anyone ever look beyond the
surface? Will anyone ever see who you really are? Will anyone ever really know you,
see you, hear you?
Jellybean has given my son, and other children like him, a forum where they can be seen
and heard and known, a place where they can be acknowledged for their presence and
their power.
From the moment the program is placed in your hands you are invited into an intimate
and extra-ordinary human experience. To say that it is heart-breaking, powerful,
devastating, joyful, tragic, enlightening, is to limit the experience to words. The heart-
breaking aspect is your heart breaking open—over and over and over and over—with the
stories of the lives of kids with special needs.
We cannot meet each other solely on the mental level. We are often at different places,
living different lives, believing different things, thinking in different ways. The only
place we can truly meet—without barriers, without judging, without naming, without
comparing--is the place of the heart. One of the great gifts of children with
disabilities is to take us to the place of the heart and help all of us meet there.
This is the ultimate message and gift of the Jellybean Conspiracy. It contains the
power of miracle.
Mary Reilly is the mother of Kyle Reilly, a poet whose work was performed in the
Jellybean Show at Shawnee Mission South High School, January 10-13, 2007
power of those with special needs.
For they are great teachers. They invite us to be aware of what is most important
here—unconditional love, compassion, and understanding.
Their gifts are almost always overlooked, their voices unheard. They are, for the most
part, unknown. My cry for my child has always been: Will anyone ever look beyond the
surface? Will anyone ever see who you really are? Will anyone ever really know you,
see you, hear you?
Jellybean has given my son, and other children like him, a forum where they can be seen
and heard and known, a place where they can be acknowledged for their presence and
their power.
From the moment the program is placed in your hands you are invited into an intimate
and extra-ordinary human experience. To say that it is heart-breaking, powerful,
devastating, joyful, tragic, enlightening, is to limit the experience to words. The heart-
breaking aspect is your heart breaking open—over and over and over and over—with the
stories of the lives of kids with special needs.
We cannot meet each other solely on the mental level. We are often at different places,
living different lives, believing different things, thinking in different ways. The only
place we can truly meet—without barriers, without judging, without naming, without
comparing--is the place of the heart. One of the great gifts of children with
disabilities is to take us to the place of the heart and help all of us meet there.
This is the ultimate message and gift of the Jellybean Conspiracy. It contains the
power of miracle.
Mary Reilly is the mother of Kyle Reilly, a poet whose work was performed in the
Jellybean Show at Shawnee Mission South High School, January 10-13, 2007