Finding Our Brave
We’ve gotten pretty good at saying no over the past five years.
Turning down things with friends. Things with family.
Because sometimes autism is just too much. Sometimes the overstimulation and the repercussions aren’t worth it.
But today, Jackson made huge strides.
We’re trying to climb out of our comfort zones and learn to live again.
Opportunity pops up…
Dock diving with Jackson and Max with the dog trainers we’re currently working with through Smokin Guns Working Dog Club
.
Scuba Steve’s Maligator Swamp opened for business today for local youth and we were encouraged to give it a shot.
My first instinct was, “This will not go well for Jackson or for Max. Or quite possibly both at the same time. And I’d be dragging them out with the big scene and all. Just like I had with Jackson…at the grocery stores and baseball games and parish picnics. And through most things we’d tried in years past that didn’t end well.”
Which is why we stopped trying.
But it’s time to try again.
Sometimes it’s about connecting with people that understand.
That are patient and willing.
The ones who get the hard.
Sometimes those opportunities fall into your lap and you take them. And sometimes that leap changes everything.
Autism used to scare me. But it’s starting to empower us instead.
We’re all capable of changing the world. Changing our families. Inspiring our neighbors. Drawing in friends. Sometimes it just takes saying “yes” to an opportunity that makes us uncomfortable.
We find our brave and do it anyways.
I’m excited to see what Jackson and Max accomplish in these next nine weeks.
And I’m even more excited to see what happens after that.
We might have been inclined to get a beagle because of his potential to get Jackson into rabbit hunting.
That’s definitely roped Jackson in. But we realize now that there’s so much more to Max than his hunting skills.
He’s kind and he’s patient. He’s social when Jackson doesn’t know how to be. He cuddles and loves on and relies on Jackson for comfort. Just as Jackson relies on him.
I never dreamed we’d get this much joy and this much therapy for our family from a freaking beagle.
But Max rocks. Jackson rocks.
Someone pinch me.
The way life unfolds itself when we put love. And intention. And time. And contentment and commitment. When we put it first. It’s this breathtaking. Big deep breaths. In and out. Peace. Joy.
And eventually opportunity triumphs.
That peace and that hope that I wouldn’t trade in this moment for anything.
I have no clue what’s in store for amazing Jackson and incredible “Max Rabbit Hunter Reasons” (as J calls him). But I’m excited to watch.
Big thanks to our trainers, Jason and Alex. We wouldn’t have come this far without such incredible people paving our way.
What makes J happy makes me happy. And I’m so excited to watch their relationship soar.
Written by, Lynn Reasons
Lynn loves walking alongside her eight year old son, Jackson, who was diagnosed with autism just shy of his third birthday. She loves working as the school nurse in her hometown and advocate for local youth with disabilities. Her greatest passion is helping families who are dealing with a new autism diagnosis, navigate their beginning. You can follow her blog on Facebook at Navigating Jackson’s Journey.
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