All the struggles advocating for accessibility at a mainstream highschool have been worth it when I realize it has taught Kai how to clearly and concisely advocate for himself. Kai’s favorite drummer is Chris Turner from Oceans Ate Alaska. Chris is amazingly talented and successful and is a wizard of something called Metric Modulation. Kai wanted to learn the technique. So you know what he did? He found Chris online, direct messaged him, asked for a private lesson, saved up his money, scheduled a time that would work for both of them considering the time difference between GA US and England. He set up his equipment and worked out where to place his phone for the cyber session and did it all by himself! After a few words of introduction and a few mins of playing I heard Kai say “Just so you are aware, I’m legally blind so if you could use words to describe what you are showing me that would be really helpful.” Chris was surprised and responded “Ah shit man, you’re a bad ass!” and then asked several questions about what Kai can/can’t see. Then the session continued and Chris did a great job answering specific drum technique questions verbally. As a parent, this experience was INCREDIBLE to witness (I’m crying as I write this). If Kai could set this up and advocate for himself with his favorite drummer @kai.owens is ready for anything! Here’s a clip of Kai using Metric Modulation. #proudmom #blinddrummer #navigatingblindness #thrivingblind #nobarriers
