Birthday: August 8, 1994
Method of Creation: #2- Seeing a face for a mere 15 seconds at the mall was all it took.
Steven is different from everyone. Very different. Well, let me back up a bit. Anyone who knows me knows that I am fascinated with the disabled world. I have been immersed among peers in wheelchairs who can't talk, need breathing treatments, use a variety of adaptive toys, etc from a very young age. To me, it was all normal. I saw them as normal people and have always created disabled people and drawn them, even as a child. Heck, I knew what Mito was when I was still in elementary school!
So anyway, one day I was writing out a new family. I wanted to use the name "Morley" somewhere so this was it. As I was making the members of the family, I decided to draw them, and I was inspired to make one of the boys "different." I drew a happy young boy in a wheelchair surrounded by his brothers and sisters. I decided to name him Steven, and didn't really think much of it, until much later.
I remember the moment it happened, and if I looked, I could give you the day too. It was the day I left for Europe in 2007 (so July 4th). As we were driving from PA to NY, we stopped for lunch at some mall somewhere. I was wandering around, in my own world, when I saw him- a kid with big, wide eyes and black or brown hair. He was in a wheelchair and was being pushed by his mom. He looked to be older- about 16 or so, and actually looked to be pretty tall. It's been 2 years, so I don't remember exactly. He didn't really move around much and I didn't want to stare, because that would be rude. I saw his dad walk up to him and say something to him but I left. In that moment when I saw his face, I knew it was Steven.
That face was etched into my mind forever. That face, that sweet young man...
An undated sketch of Steven
I went home and suddenly Steven became a prominent being in the world of V. Richlin. I knew that he looked like and slowly incorporated bits and pieces of his life that I got from other places. Steven became a (at the time) 13-year-old boy who was one of the world's most precious people- so vulnerable to anything and yet so loved and so able to give love. Steven is unable to walk. His muscles are all very stiff and it is very hard for him to move around. However, his hands and arms move slowly and smoothly, like water in a slow stream. He can reach out to hold things on his tray such as a teddy bear but his grip is too soft to hold on to things. However, if he is near someone he likes, he will slowly reach his hand out and smile when they take it in theirs.
He is very quiet. He rarely makes a sound and is very easy going. If he could talk, he would be very sofstpoken with a quiet voice. He is able to smile when he is happy or likes something, laugh at something funny, and to cry in discomfort. He does not get angry. The genetic defect he has (which I made up) makes it so that he is almost always happy. The smile he gives to anyone that he loves makes all his pain, discomfort, and hard times melt away in a flash. It may not seem like he amounts to much but he does. Even though there is much that he does not understand, he definitely knows what he likes.
Steven, drawn abstractly in a cloud, with his favorite fuzzy slippers
For anyone that is in the same condition as Steven, they probably spend their days at home away from everything. True, Steven is on a very tight schedule when it comes to things but his parents have tried to get him out every opportunity they can. On lazy days he enjoys being on the couch watching movies or going outside in his special swing, where he can enjoy the changing sky. He loves to be in the sunroom and watch the thunderstorms as they pass by. His favorite shows on TV are Power Rangers and Pokemon and he enjoys listening to music. He attends his high school 2 days a week and a special hospital program for kids like him 3 days a week. He enjoys it and loves getting ready in the morning. His parents sometimes don't know how much he understands but they act like he understands everything. They always tell him what they are doing before they do it and he seems to appreciate that.
Steven's favorite thing ever is music. He is able to get out of the house enough for an evening concert, and enjoys going to his older brothers' band concerts, as all 3 of them are musicians. He also loves going to the local bands and orchestras and loves the radio. He will sometimes look at his radio until it is turned on for him.
I thought that since it was Steven's 15th birthday today that I should post something. He is one of my favorite people and I wish I could meet someone like him.
With that, I leave you 5 fun facts:
1. Steven rarely makes a peep, because he is softspoken.
2. Steven loves cats and cats love him too.
3. Steven's favorite piece is "The Planets."
4. Steven has Yu-Gi-Oh sheets on his bed :-)
5. Steven has a very special bond with his brother Westley.
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