The Big Picture: An old tale retold

Once upon a time three blind men met an elephant the street. They had no idea what it was.
“Hey, the elephant is a pillar,” said the first man who touched his leg.
“Oh, no! it’s like a rope,” said the second man who touched the tail.
“Oh, no! it’s like a branch of a tree,” said the third man who touched his trunk.
They could not agree on what the elephant was like and began to argue.

A wise man was passing by and heard them. “All of you are right,” he said. “Each one of you touched a different part of the elephant. So, actually the elephant has all those features that you said.”
…Some of my friends can’t see. Some of my friends can’t hear. Some of my friends can’t talk.
But a blind person “sees” with his ears; a deaf person “hears” with his eyes; a mute person “speaks” with his hands. And overall, my friends hold the secret of true joy and pure love clutched tightly in their tiny hands.
So you see, none of them are really handicapped.
…How many disabilities do you have?
It’s only when you can’t love that you are truly handicapped.
Mr. Pat is no saint, anymore special than the parents who spend the night awake worrying about their child’s safety, or the teachers fast approaching sainthood in their perseverance of love.
We are just ordinary people who are fortunate enough to love extraordinary children. We are all heroes to our friends, and if we aren’t, we need to try harder.
And that’s really the elephant in our street—the big picture—isn’t it?
…It’s all in your point of view.