Assumptions

A conversation I had with a gentleman (waiter at a restaurant) accented an important assumption regarding children experiencing disability and their families in this cultural context. The conversation went like this:

Waiter: What do you do for a living?

Me: I am a therapist.

Waiter: Oh! That is wonderful. So you help people.

Me: I try to. I work with children with conditions such as Autism and Down Syndrome.

Waiter: Oh, yes, orphans.

Me: What?

Waiter: Orphans.

Me: Oh, in Ethiopia, yes, many of the children live in orphanages but in other countries they live with their families.

Waiter: Really? So they can take care of them?

Me: Yes.

Waiter: Families here must learn to take care of these children.