My name is Richard Keagan-Bull. I am a man with a learning disability. This book is my life story and I think it is a story that people will want to read.

My brother is older than me and we both have a learning disability. In fact when they learnt about my brother having a learning disability, I was already on the way but they continued to have me.

When I was first born my mum and dad, they were told just to ‘forget about us’, to ‘put us away’, not to worry about us. I don’t think my Mum or my Dad ever thought that I would be publishing my life story.

I wanted to have a sort of diary to remember the things I have done in my past and what I have achieved. At some point, people can look at my life story and remember things what have happened. It might make people think, maybe cry in some bits, but also they might also have a jolly good laugh over a cup of tea about some of the things I did!

My gift is that I can stand up for people with learning disabilities who are less able than me and say how it is. I can look back at being the founding chair of the National Speaking Group for L’Arche UK and also one of the founding chairs of the Lambeth Learning Disability Assembly.

My message to society is, firstly, it’s me who’s got the learning disability. Secondly, if I was to shake your hand, you couldn’t catch my learning disability from me. It’s not a disease you can catch.

Sometimes you have to look into the eyes of a person to get to know them, to hold their hands sometimes to make them feel safe and secure. I hope that whoever reads this book or my story will look at it and tell their friends:

This man has taken part in normal activities and has spoken out for people with learning disabilities and his voice should be heard and listened to.


A note from my friend and secretary Hazel who helped me write my book:

I can’t remember if it was Richard’s idea to write his life story or whether I suggested it. He was certainly keen.

My job was simply to type what Richard said. Each week he would turn up clear about what he wanted to say and very chronological in the order of his memories. Often I had to ask him to slow down as I could hardly keep up with his flow of thought. I tried hard to write down exactly what I heard. Of course, I knew nothing of his life before L’Arche.

I was very moved by parts of his story, and in the chapter on the tin of peaches I was almost weeping with laughter as I tried to keep typing!

Richard knows how to enjoy life, how to be generous, how to be grateful, how to create community and how to be faithful as a friend. Our afternoon tea party was typical of Richard – and fun!

It was a privilege to work for Richard. I hope people enjoy his story as much as he has enjoyed his life.