In the book I AM A WOMAN, Annette Miinch, a young woman with Down syndrome who lives in a small community in Elsinore, Denmark, speaks openly about herself, her life, and the community she calls home. Her words are recorded with great care by Jørgen Hviid, a Catholic priest, psychologist, and one of the founding members of L'Arche, the community where Annette lives.
What emerges is a portrait of a young woman of remarkable vitality—someone with independent judgment and a firm desire to take charge of her own life. She chooses to live in a community that she enriches with her gifts, and she helps the people she meets understand and appreciate the qualities of those we call "handicapped." The book has not yet been translated into Italian. (Ed.)
My New Home
Something changed in my life in 1977. I think they closed the institution where I had lived for so many years, and they needed to find a place for me. I had a social worker named Helen. She had a small car and a small dog. I don't think she had a husband. One day she picked me up in the car with the dog, and we drove to a place called Elsinore. Along the way she told me all about the people living in that community. She said if I liked it, I could live there. I didn't know what to say. Then she told me my mother was coming to see the place too. I hadn't seen my mother in a long time, but when I saw her again, she was just the same. When we arrived, we went into a big yellow house full of people. There was a tall woman named Margherita. She told me herself. She was quite kind and was supposed to look after me. She seemed happy I was there. There was also a man with curly hair—not as curly as the hair of a Black man I saw once, but curly. I liked him because he seemed like a kind person. He smiled and said everyone was happy to see me.
Everyday Life in Elsinore
One day Beth cooks, and the next day Kjeld and I cook, and we take turns that way. I peel potatoes and make spaghetti. We eat meat and fish too. I can make many different dishes. I only need help with weighing things and getting the quantities right. On Sunday we have more time to cook something new, and we plan the meals together with Birgit and the others who help when we can't manage alone. I've had a cookbook for several years now. It was my birthday present—everyone in the community gave it to me together. I always look through it for something I don't know by heart. Kjeld can't read, but I can, and together we figure it out. You can tell from the cover how much I've used it. I like to read, but I'm not fast.
One day I do the shopping, and the next day Betty does it. Each of us is responsible for one day. The night before, I write the shopping list and check the refrigerator to see what we're missing. Birgit checks the list in case I've forgotten something.
We Read Many Books
I learned to read when I was at school many years ago. I can read the advertisements they give us in stores, and I can read books too. I once read a book about immigrants in America—about their struggles and their joys. I don't read as many books now. I listen to the ones Father Jørgen reads to us in the evening.
We used to knit in the evenings, all of us except Kjeld and Father Jørgen. Kjeld had never learned, and Father Jørgen didn't want to. So he started reading to us instead, and we love it. We read The Little King, a very good Polish book. We read about a man who lived in the Arctic in Greenland. There was a polar bear that wanted to visit him, and that wasn't a good thing—he was very afraid. The nature in Greenland is beautiful, but it's also very cold with so much snow. I like to ski.
We also read Les Misérables, and it was very moving with Jean Valjean and the terrible policeman who was always chasing him. A policeman chased me once in the woods. I had run away, but that was long before I came to this community. I don't do those things anymore because now I'm a woman. There was a big dog that licked my face, but I wasn't afraid—I like dogs.
We Go to Norway
There was a priest from Lillehammer who had heard about us. He worked in a parish, and his idea was that we would come to Norway and his parish would pay for the trip. It seemed like a good idea. We were supposed to talk about our community, as we always do, and we had to do magic tricks and everything else. We accepted, and we had to practice seriously because it was something new and important for us. I was supposed to introduce Fernando, a little magic trick with a flea, and some other tricks too. I learned a new trick called "the egg bag." I had to practice a lot before Father Jørgen was satisfied. Every movement had to be exact, and the timing had to be precise. Otherwise the joke and the trick weren't funny. Everything had to be "sold" in the right way, but it took time before I understood that. Now I think I can do it because I can feel the people when they applaud. If we didn't prepare well, we weren't allowed to do the show. I liked the "egg bag" and I learned another trick too—this one is easier. I make a rope stand straight in the air, and then it turns into a handkerchief.