Posts Tagged ‘Acceptance’
Thank You For Including My Son
Disclaimer: Due to privacy concerns, names have been changed to protect the identity of minors. There’s a little girl in my son Nicholas’s class. I’ll call her “E.” Nicholas and E just met this year in Kindergarten. They like to play outside together. They like to sit by each other in school. They even like to hold hands. You may think this is a typical friendship story. A cute little love story. You may think you’ve already heard this story before. But this is different. This is a story of…
Read MoreFifteen Years of Autism Awareness
I approached this last Autism Awareness Month differently than I have in the past. Somehow, it’s not mine anymore…It’s hers. Don’t get me wrong, I will continue to fight for my daughter, Lizzie, every day, and I will openly share about our lives to help others understand the dire unmet needs of our community. But, experiencing autism for over fifteen years has allowed my emotions to stabilize and a different perspective to set in. This is how my Autism Awareness Day has changed over the years: It has only been…
Read MoreMisunderstood in Public
Hi. My name is Carrie. I have five kids, and my second son has autism. His name is Jack. He is fifteen. Every so often I come across an article about how a person with a diagnosis or a disability was asked to leave a public place because they were too loud, or disruptive, or misunderstood. Broadway musicals. Movie theaters. Water parks. When you have a child diagnosed with autism, doing something as simple as going to the grocery store, or a Little League baseball game, can be a challenge.…
Read MoreWaiting for Next Year…
I took the tree down the minute Christmas was over this year. Usually, I have the tree up from November through to the end of January but this year; I’m so damn relieved it’s over. This entire year I have spent worrying about next year. About sending my non-verbal son to school. I have taken him to pre-kindy at an education support school for the last 3 terms, a 2 hour session once a week which I get to stay with him, to help prepare him for Kindy next year.…
Read MoreThe Hardest Question Will Always Be Why
The hardest question you will ever ask is why. You will fixate on it. You will manically go over it all in your head. Everything you did or didn’t do during the months that turned into the years that got you to this point. You will justify and find reasoning that soothes your heart. But you will always come back to one simple question. Why? You can be firmly planted, comfortably and happily, in acceptance and still find yourself haunted by the why. Why my child? Why my family? Why?…
Read MoreWhat Word Describes you in 2019?
Here we are in the last month of 2019. Wow! Where did the year go? While doing a late-night Facebook scroll, I read a post from a lovely neighbor that read “what will be the word that describes you in 2019?” I thought about that intently. I am different than I was one year ago. Forever changed by one word. Acceptance. I have a horrible memory and often times can’t even remember why I opened the fridge! Although, there are moments over this past year that have been ingrained…
Read MoreThe Hardest Thing You Will Ever Wait For
We all wait for things. Waiting is a normal part of every day life. Sometimes the waiting is fun and exciting. But sometimes, it’s agonizing. Maybe you are waiting to hear back from a college that you applied too. Or about a job interview. Maybe you are waiting for your partner to pop the question while every single one of your friends is getting engaged already. Maybe you are waiting until the time is right to have kids. Until everything is in order. Or maybe you are waiting month after…
Read MoreAutism is Joy. So Much Joy.
Autism. It’s not glamorous, easy, or fun. It’s cancelling plans you’d been looking forward to, and not wanting to explain because you don’t want pity or sympathy… Or even worse…someone acting like they understand something that you have to live to grasp. It is size 7 diapers at three and a half, and fearing having to put your squishy cheek little boy in adult diapers. It’s baby gates, high chairs, and it’s closed top cups. It is toys still in boxes because your son would rather spin the wheels on…
Read MoreI Will Never Be the Same
Yesterday, I couldn’t get out of bed. I barely willed myself to do the dishes. I can’t explain why. Nothing had really “happened.” There wasn’t some explosive meltdown or feelings of inadequacy. I just got scared. So scared. I remember when I was a child and I would wake up from a bad dream and find myself in between my parents, completely safe and free or fear. Now I find myself in my son’s bed, my body curled next to his, never wanting to let go, knowing every morning I…
Read MoreShe’s Simple
How do you define the word simple? What images come to mind when you think of this word? The definition includes the following terms: “ Basic, plain, uncomplicated, easily understood or done, presenting no difficulty.” Simple, right? Wrong. Try this: Use simple in a sentence: “We had a simple dinner last night, no fuss” “I want to keep our wedding simple, no fuss and minimal decorations” “What are you wearing to dinner? Oh, just a simple white blouse” “How was your test? It was pretty simple and easy, studying paid…
Read More