-Astra Millberg-
Astra is a 28 year old with Down syndrome from Toronto, Canada.  Below is what she has to say about her life.

I hear people say, "I'd rather be dead than like that."  Whoever said that, he has his own problems. What I have, I can't get rid of it.  I guess I'm not the only person with it. Me, I'm proud. Look at the things I am doing.  Others with Down syndrome, they are still hidden away. They don't want to talk about "the label." But I figure I'm pretty much here to stay.  As long as I'm around, it's not going to go away.
My moods are up and down. One moment, I'm happy; the next moment, I'm upset. Sometimes the sun comes out, and sometimes it hides behind a cloud. That's how I am. More or less, I go with the moods of the weather.
What makes me happy is being a friend to a person. I know a girl -- everybody else wasn't nice to her because she was a drug addict and an alcoholic. But a person like that needs friends. I don't know how much she remembers of our friendship, but I remember it, and it makes me happy.
I don't have any physical pain. I know I am short -- that I do admit! But being short is actually nice -- I can get myself out of trouble without being seen!
Sometimes, it is hard for me to concentrate. When it comes to life and reality and the way to live, sometimes I get confused. But if I get in trouble, I know how to get help. I wouldn't say I get dizzy, but sometimes I get confused about life and its difficulties. If I have a home I can get back to, I can do things outside.
Sometimes I get lost, and sometimes I can orient myself and not get lost. When I was younger, I used to get lost a lot and the police would bring me back. At least I know that they are friends -- it's not like they put me in handcuffs! They are very friendly, even to people with disabilities. I could see myself working in a police station.
I'm not afraid of going on the subway. I'm just afraid I'll get pushed in the pit!  And I'm not afraid of noise, unless it's a gunshot! Thunder and lightning, I'm not afraid of -- I like them.
I am pretty well literate. Writing, I do every night in my diary. Everybody says I should become a novelist, the way I write. But what I write is just between me and my Mom.
I was born in Toronto. I'm a legal Canadian with the right to vote. I like that. Most people with disabilities don't vote.
I get lonely sometimes. I know that people say that you're never really alone -- that's God they're talking about. I go to church, we're Christian.  I pray for the family I used to have when they were a larger group -- my grandmother, my aunt. I pray for myself sometimes. For myself, I pray for peace, love.
Once, when I was working at the Bob Rumball camp, I fell asleep to the sounds the deaf were making, and it sounded like music. That night, I saw the light of Heaven. It was just a bright light -- no face, nothing -- just peace. I wrote that down in my diary so I can keep the feeling with me.
Some people say that babies with Down syndrome have beautiful eyes.  Not all. But some of us do.

to have down syndrome
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