Success in today’s society revolves around moving up while trying to blend in as much as possible. If you don’t fit in or are a little different from others, you are often seen as “strange” or “abnormal.”
This depressing outlook on life places excessive emphasis on how we appear and how we compare to our peers.
Just ask Jono Lancaster, who is human like the rest of us but has been painfully reminded numerous times of how cruel the world can be.
In October 1985, Jono Lancaster was born in England, but the hospital staff noticed something unusual about him almost immediately.
He was diagnosed with Treacher Collins syndrome, a rare prenatal condition that causes facial bones to form asymmetrically.
The physicians informed Jono’s parents of the diagnosis and added that he would probably never be able to walk or talk. Shocked, Jono’s parents gave up on him because it was too much for them to handle.
“My parents were completely shocked when I was born. After 36 hours in the hospital, I was discharged. Social services were able to get care for me. At the 2015 Nord Conference, Jono recalled that the foster care provider was a woman named Jean.
Less than two days after Jono was born, his parents abandoned him and gave him up for adoption. The hospital called Social Services, and a wonderful woman named Jean Lancaster adopted and raised Jono.
When Jean first saw the young boy, she wasn’t horrified or frightened. She simply lifted him up, and an immediate bond developed. “When can I take him home?” Jean asked the nurse.
From the beginning, his foster mother gave him the affection and attention he needed, and Jono couldn’t have asked for a more loving or devoted mother.
Although Jono’s mother gave him a lot of support, his early years were marked by a lack of sympathy from the outside world.
Jono began to recognize himself when he started attending school. He realized right away that he didn’t look like his classmates.
“I kind of felt like I was by myself and that I was the only person in the world who was like me,” he said. “I wondered, ‘Why did I have to end up looking like this? People are lucky enough to win the lottery or become professional footballers, doctors, or lawyers.'” Jono commented in an interview with Adelaide Now.
It’s crucial to understand that Treacher Collins syndrome has no impact whatsoever on a child’s IQ. The only thing Jono’s classmates were interested in was his appearance. They used to make faces and run away, saying they didn’t want to catch his “disease.”
“I used to keep my mom informed about my discontentment. She had already done so much for me,” he said in an interview with the BBC.
However, Jono refused to give up and let the bigots win, and he had a wonderful woman by his side.
Jean, Jono’s foster mother, tried to reconnect Jono with his biological parents. But when they didn’t respond to her letters for five years, she took the next step and adopted Jono on May 18, 1990.
“I now have two birthdays,” Jono remarked at the 2015 Nord Conference. “I used to tell other kids that my mom went to the hospital, looked at all the babies, and chose me, whereas their parents were stuck with them.”
