I came up with the title, “The Summer Gentling” on one of summer’s earliest days. I came up with it because for one blazing second I thought that things would be quieter or easier when my children weren’t bound into a schedule of academics and activities. I thought that waking late and laying around and playing in the pool were the panacea to stress, and my complaining, holler-y kids would become … [Read more...]
Not Strong Enough
Middle school. A place where girls and boys shoot into young adulthood, catapulted by hormones and peer pressure to just fit in. Be able to spin through the locker combination with ease and swag, flinging wide the banging metal door that says, "I have arrived." I'm here. Maybe they gained a few inches in height, with arms and legs a bit more rounder and stronger to match their stature, confidently … [Read more...]
Washing Windows
I’ve had conversations with three separate people this week regarding the way our perception of events either clouds our Kingdom vision, or clarifies it. I can’t think of a better word picture for this than washing windows. My husband and I live in the country, where farmers plow and plant and harvest. We also live on the highest point of the county, where the wind blows—a lot! Windows get … [Read more...]
Spectrum Overload
Last time I wrote about the rainy days. I know we all have them. Well, today, was one in a long sequence of rainy days. Symptoms Raging Just in case I'm tempted to forget that life is complex, my son reminds me by becoming obsessed with flushing the wipes down the toilet. Now, we live in an old farm house. Very old. The plumbing is old. Very old. It doesn't handle the flushing of normal … [Read more...]
The Goodbye Salute: Noah Transitions to Middle School
In the gymnasium at North Bend Elementary, a smallish school in a mostly agrarian county in northeast Maryland, we parents sat packed together in tight rows. We were prepping for a transition. In the front of the gym, on the floor, were rows of children from kindergarten through fourth grade. They were present as witnesses to this celebration of the fifth graders. Today, the school would laud … [Read more...]
How to Peacefully Raise and Release Your Special-Needs Child
I just texted these words to my 23-year old daughter who has autism. “Hi. I haven’t talked to you in a week. How are things?” Katie lives across town in a little house by herself. She loves it. It seems to be working for the whole family, but such a casual interaction with my child seems strange. It would be normal for a typical family, but I feel like I'm missing something. Reacting like a … [Read more...]