I’m bouncing back from Calla Lilygate Tuesday. The day began with a message from a person named Josie, who wrote:
“You continually misspell Calla Lily; I cannot get past that. Calla Lillies are my favorite flowers. They were my wedding flowers. And, sorry, but I cannot enjoy your flowers because your photos because you disrespect the flower by not being able to spell it correctly.”
It went downhill from there. I won’t publish the last one from a man who said he was a much better person than I was because he cared about spelling and grammar.
The message was too long and full of praise for himself and condemnation of me. Enough was enough.
Josie’s was one of the more pleasant letters I got, although the Yay Jon people soon checked in in force and lifted my spirits. Josie’s was a new way to look at Dyslexia, claiming the people who had it were being disrespectful rather than wrestling with a brain disorder. That never came up at Dyslexia survival school.
Some flower people take themselves very seriously. Josie doesn’t need to get past it; she needs to find another blog, take it with her, and get out of Hell (see below.)
The day ended well; I started deleting messages like hers – suggesting I was also disrespecting her late husband was the last straw. It wasn’t a hate message; it was just a cruel and thoughtless message, one of many.
And I decided to learn from this, to take my Dyslexia seriously and respect it.
My blog readers came to the rescue, reminding me that some things need to be ignored. Despite the news and the many people who can’t bear the idea of a typo for any reason, we are becoming a happy and safe place.
I thank the Yay Jon people; they’ve got my back.
Yesterday, I saw the ghosts of Miss McCarthy, my elementary school English teacher (handkerchief stuffed into shirt sleeve and all). She told my mother (and me) that I should be held back in a special class for intellectually impaired kids because I misspelled words. My mother fought for me and won the day. Miss McCarthy never forgave me or her.
We all knew what that particular class was for. The kids assigned to it went up to the third floor and were never seen or heard from again.
Miss McCarthy’s spirit lives. She was not about compassion and understanding either.
My new spiritual guru of the moment, Thich Nhat Hanh, says that the definition of hell is simple: it’s a place without understanding and compassion. I felt I was in a kind of hell yesterday.
I’m sorry that Josie lost her husband; she is not sad that I have Dyslexia. I quit hell yesterday to go and take more Calla Lily photos (above). They don’t seem to mind typos and are posing for me beautifully. They are my favorite flower of 2024.
As I wrote yesterday, my Dyslexia latched on to my Carra (!For old time’s sake, I’m not correcting it) Lily’s. Whenever I looked at them, I saw a different spelling and thought it was right. Almost every time I thought I was right, I was wrong. That’s how Dyslelxia sometimes works.
The Social Media Vulture Brigade was ready to pounce.
This was becoming a thing.
I decided to do something Dyslexics are taught to do as soon as they are diagnosed: buy some Post-its and use them. I have a lot of Post-its, but I use them sparingly. They don’t stick well to things and disappear. I suspect Bud eats them.
Dyslexia, for those who care, is a learning disorder that causes difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and words and learning how they relate to letters and words (decoding). Also called a reading disability, dyslexia results from individual differences in areas of the brain that process language.
Dyslexia is actually about information processing. Dyslexic people may have difficulty processing and remembering information they see and hear, which can affect learning and acquiring literacy skills. Dyslexia can also impact other areas, such as organizational skills.
Last night, Maria was reading about Dyslexia. “When I read about Dyslexia,” she said, “I see you, Jon.”
Amen. A doctor told me I must be crazy to start writing a blog. Since I was already crazy, it wasn’t an obstacle for me.
I asked Maria to make me an artist Post-it to hang by my desk so I could look at it when I write about the flowers, which I intend to do all summer. Take that, Miss McCarthy. My Calla photos are a big hit; I’m getting more praise for them than for any other flowers I’ve taken photos of.
She made it on yellow paper, bless her.
I should have done this initially, but I didn’t know the photos would be so beautiful and loved. That one stung; I love my Calla Lilies. Hopefully, Josie has huffed off by now.
This will help. So will my delete button and my very efficient blocking software.
I’ve figured it out. My Post-it is yellow and stands out. They are my yellow helpers.
My daughter has dyslexia and also has a blog (about F1 racing). She is a voracious reader and writer and we LOVE her ‘mistakes’ which are a wonderful part of the whole of her. Thank you for educating people about dylexia.
She is very lucky to have you as a mother, Barbara, and I’m lucky to have you as a reader…
Oprah hosted a TV program about obesity on prime time this week. To this day even doctors use “shame” tactics on overweight patients while many are suffering from a brain disorder. I’ve found (sorry to be so negative) but there’s not much understanding for people with illness, especially illnesses that affect brain function. Your mother did the right thing by standing up to your teacher. In spite of dyslexia you have published many, many books. That’s a huge, gigantic, overwhelming success story.
YAY JON!!! I don’t give a rat’s rump how you choose to spell calla lily. Just please don’t stop taking such drop dead gorgeous photographs of them. YAY JON!!!!
I promise, Heidi thanks.
Those idiots who criticize your spelling must be very unhappy people with way too much time on their hands! Anyone who reads your words and views your photos and can only come up with spelling errors to talk about needs their priorities adjusted. It made me furious to read about them and frustrated that I could not personally dismiss them. Jon, ,these people are not worthy of your time.
Shaming people for a disability makes my blood boil. Lots of folks seem to have a need to feel superior. Ugh! I’m a retired special Ed teacher. Taught kids with autism. I wish that glassbowl wasn’t named Josie. That’s my beloved dog’s name
Jon, I read this post with pleasure. (As I do many of your posts.)
I have never been a good speller. This problem has no bearing on worth and intelligence. Even though I graduated from college with a degree in science and was on the Dean’s List, I could not and still cannot spell well enough to save my life. (If I was in front of a firing squad and told that I would be spared if I would spell a word correctly, I would just ask for the ‘last cigarette’. LOL) Good writing is about communication, not spelling.
Thanks Mary, I read your with pleasure also..
honestly I thought the way you spelled it was the right way because it was your way. How sad a life for someone who gets stuck and can’t move past a typo…
Sometimes that’s true, somethimes I pick my own words for things, which is common among writers..It drives the purists and scolds nuts when you think for yourself.
What bothers me most are the people who continue to peck at you even though you’ve given a clear explanation of how dyslexia affects you and how hurtful their comments are. This goes back to your recent post on the lack of civility and disrespect that’s out there. If they’re that anal about spelling, then they should go elsewhere and quit picking on you.
“Since I was already crazy, it wasn’t an obstacle for me.” I think this is going on my own yellow post-it note today for whenever I don’t feel brave! Yay, Jon. Do I notice your typos? Yes. Do I care? No. I know you have dyslexia. And besides, typos have no moral quality and are not a sin in a world that has so many of them for each of us to work full-time on our own while minding our own business. I know you are kind, generous to a fault, empathetic, a wonderful writer, a keen observer of human and animal hearts, one who puts beauty into the world through photography, and a compassionate human who thinks about serving others every day. Is this not a gracious plenty, dear critics? I’ve been married for 35 years to a former English teacher. People would often get nervous and comment that they had better watch how they speak in front of him. He would reply, “I ain’t on duty today.” Take a break, Grammar Police.
Thanks Patricia, I’m lucky to know you..
Always count me as part of the *Yay Jon* crowd! I feel I have learned a fair amount about dyslexia merely through your very open discussion of it over the years and I thank you for that. We are all human and it would be rather dull if we *were* all perfect! While growing up…..I was a spelling champion in school for many years….. even now, my husband will ask me how to spell a word he is not familiar with…..it was one of the few feathers in my cap in my youth however I have not found it to have been particularly helpful in my life’s path overall. I have come to embrace your occaisional misspelled word and find them to flow naturally in the thread of your thinking and writing….to the point where I don’t even notice them anymore! They are *you*, as much as any other facet of YOU is. (IMHO).
Susan M
Thanks Susan, your husband is fortunate..
It seems the world is full of broken people clutching at any means to make themselves feel better or justified in some way. It’s terribly sad to think someone could believe it is possible to disrespect her wedding flower by misspelling its name but you mention that her husband died. She is obviously very vulnerable and she probably came to your blog because of the flowers and I doubt she was aware of your dyslexia.
But I am sorry you get so deluged by these comments. I know it isn’t possible to ignore them when they are so many and so cruel.
Thanks Caroline it is possible to ignore them, and I ‘m getting good at it I don’t know what this person was thinking, I suspect she is full of grief and perhaps anger but I’ll never know.
spelling? you must be kidding. to bad people cannot just appreciate the beauty of the photographs. and appreciate your efforts in taking them. i do. many thanks wendy. greenspan
It’s interesting not of the various police squads on social media every mention the photos..They just pretend to care about theri spelling.
Hi Jon
Each time I see a word misspelled I smile. My second son is dyslexic and he himself developed many coping strategies. I am so proud of him.
May you flourish in this mean world.
He is lucky to have you for a mother..
Yay Jon! I’m currently reading Henry Winkler’s autobiography and he is severely dyslexic. He talks about his struggles and how it still effects him today. You might enjoy reading it. It’s truly enlightening to see how The Fonz struggled/struggles with dyslexia during his amazing career.
I love your typos – they keep me on my toes!
Thanks Sandy, if the Fonz can do it, I can…:)
What’s that saying? – “a rose by any other name (or spelling!) will smell the same…”
I don’t mind how you spell words or use ‘proper’ sentence structure. I read your blog because I enjoying you writing from your heart. You write your real feelings in a world that seems to barely be able to feel or say anything kind anymore. Those mean people break my heart. What a sad life they live.
But there are still some of us out here, Jon. We do still care about others.
We have an old cowboy friend who reminds us in times of stress…
“Don’t let the bastards get you down!”
Enjoy your evening and tell Maria I said ‘Hi’ 🙂
Yay, Jon!
I’ve been reading your blog for several years. It was a while before I came across one of your remarks about your dyslexia. I have been grateful to read whatever you have to say about it. I don’t have it, but those who do don’t deserve to be shamed for it. Because of your writing about it, and because some of your writing still has those “mis-spellings,” I am reminded that many people who might be reading you for the first time may now be able to be kind to dyslexics they know personally. Thanks, Jon. It matters. I’m sorry people are so ridiculously mean. I bet they had a Miss McCarthy in their lives, too, and just absorbed that attitude. Phooey on them.
Jon…
I’m sorry that you must put up with cruel responses based on a lack of knowledge about dyslexia. I volunteered for several years with an organization (now called Learning Ally) that prepares reading materials for the blind and dyslexic.
Let’s start with Yay Jon. Did I notice words misspelled? Yes. Do I care? No – the content is what’s important. You are a kind and giving person. Let’s all be kind to each other.
Our younger son had dyslexia and he was taught how to cope with it from a young age. I was his advocate during his school years. I miss his notes and writings as he passed at 47 years. In the evening I look forward to all the pictures of your farm, Zip and flowers and scenery.
I was looking at a blog entry from yesterday – a Josie said
“Your touching message makes all the difference in understanding the challenges of dyslexia.”
I love it when others can learn & show compassion.
Hi Jon, I’m a text and spell freak. That said, your display of writing as edited by your and your grammar checking software shows me the effort and infinite variety of our dynamic, hardworking members of humanity. What a boring world this would be if everything were all the perfectly same. The best best part of this very best post was the coda photo of a TEXT post-it note given to you by your request from a magnificent, magnanimus visual artist that glows and glimmers with the frequency of a profound love!
Yay, John! I can’t imagine if I had to worry about every mistake I made, every misspelled word, misplaced sentence, or incorrect ‘something’…some people can’t help themselves…thatvdoes not mean, however, that we have to tolerate it.
I’m always left smiling when you tell these people to find another platform, on another blog…and go away…far away.
You are allowed mistakes…and you can live your life the way you want, without unneeded help from others.
I think you do a wonderful job at being Jon, and wouldn’t change a thing.
Two things from a retired reading teacher:
1. Most people with dyslexia have average to above average intelligence. It’s a brain disorder not a choice.
2. The ability to spell correctly has nothing to do with intelligence.
Keep up the good work Jon!
Ann
Count me in as part of the *Yay Jon* crowd! I love your blog and learn something new everyday when I read one of your posts. I make a conscious effort every day to choose love and compassion. Life is too short and difficult to waste on anger and hate. Sending love and great appreciation for what you do.
Your title to this entry cracked me up. Who cares about the odd mis-spellings when such an versatile, intricate mind can construct such interesting and often humorous sentences. If this person is taking spelling so personally as to feel it disrespects her wedding, husband and flowers, then I have to say she must be the ultimate narcissist as you probably wouldn’t know her if you bumped into her.Wow. We all feel you speak to us personally but her twist on it is just unwell. I hope she gets help.
I read some comments but skipped finally, just to add my voice to your comments! I applaud you. My shock is that these people that put you down, from dyslexia to misspelled words, to hatred of your treatment of Zip being a barn cat, and they continue to follow you! Yes, I think they need to leave you alone and leave you to us, your fan club! I’m glad you shoulder them well, they’d have me rolling over into a grave and waiting for their dirt to pile up on top of me! Keep it up. If they don’t like misspelled words, if they get confused and try to correct who you are trying to talk about if you call Zip the dog’s name in your post, or whatever, I don’t know why they just don’t leave you alone and go read someone else’s blog! At any rate, I just wanted to add my own bit of encouragement. I love your spiritual readings. They almost all are, now. And they become an important part of my own growth, so keep it up, Jon.