My Stuttering Soulmate

 The Stuttering Community is a community where both my stutter and I belong. 

It is a place where I can speak without fear of being looked at funny when the fluency of my speech falters. 

It is a place where I can express myself in as much time as I need. There is no time pressure. There is no pressure to speak at all if I don't want to.

I have met so many wonderful people through this community, be it at home (in Ireland), be it through SAY (the Stuttering Association for the Young in America) or be it through this blog/Instagram. I feel so lucky to have met these people and to have had so many great conversations and so many amazing experiences throughout my lifetime, simply because I stutter. 

My Stuttering Soulmate 

But there is one person in particular that I have met through the stuttering community who I feel so blessed to call my stuttering soulmate. I call him this because we met, about 14 years ago, at a summer camp for people who stutter. From the day we met, I knew that my life had been changed and that I had gained a lifelong friend. We have watched each other grow up. We have been there for each other in the good times and the bad times. And I think what makes our bond even more special is that we don't even live on the same continent. There is a wide ocean separating us and a 5 hour time difference. So I know that our connection must be pretty strong to be able to survive the distance and that annoying time difference. 

And a couple of weeks ago, I was fortunate enough, after three years of being apart, to go and visit him. We had a full week together and it was probably one of the best weeks of my life and something that I will always remember. I can't remember the last time laughed so much or had more in-depth conversations about everything and anything. 

And we could stutter freely. We supported each other when we had a challenging speaking situation. We talked about our stutters and about the summer camp we met at. But our stutters were not the focal point of the week.

The week I spent with him filled my soul with joy and my heart with love. And in this day and age, that doesn't happen all that frequently. 

Matt and I in Washington DC

❤️

So thank you, Matt. Thank you for being my stuttering soulmate. Until next time my friend! 🍻 

And if you haven't found your stuttering soulmate, just know that they always turn up when you least expect it! Have faith!