Today on the dojo, Tony continues the thread on freedom and independence, sharing his thoughts on how freedom is not free from responsibility and obligations. He talks about how the ability to make our own choices for ourselves is an important philosophical principle for the liberties for people with disabilities, which also includes the freedom to make wrong choices.
Tony also dives into the freedom of our minds and the thoughts he may have. The inner voice we have within us can be the worse critic and become an unhealthy aspect of our lives. It takes conscience effort to have the awareness to redirect our thoughts and that we don’t have to accept all the thoughts that pop into our head. He touches on Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and how the highest level on that hierarchy is is self actualization. Tony reminds us of Epictetus and how our chief task in life is to identify those things that are up to us and those which are out of our control. To Tony, this points directly to freedom: the freedoms you have are the freedoms you have control over.
Centers For Independent Living strive to provide the options and opportunities for people to make decisions to better their lives; opportunities that were not available before coming to the centers to receive the services they need. CILs empower their consumers to make choices that could increase their independence but that they have the freedom to make whatever choice they deem is most suitable for them. Independence is about choice, making choices for ourselves.
Episode Resources:
If you have topics you'd like for us to discuss with our community and listeners, leave a comment or contact us at cilncf.org@gmail.com! We'd love to have guests participate with Tony on our Disability Dojos- so if that person is you, reach out and let us know!
For More Information visit: Center For Independent Living of North Central Florida
