Autism awareness through the eyes of Jesus? During Autism Awareness Month, I like to remind myself and those who know and love someone with autism to look at that child or adult through the eyes of Jesus. Changing one's gaze explodes preconceptions and shifts paradigms in a powerful way. The following was written when my son Joel was ten years old. He is now 31. This is a vision I go back to, time … [Read more...]
Baby Stepping Across the Miles
I remember those first steps. So unsteady. So unsure. But so ready. Little chubby knees bending just enough to move sweet little feet forward by a couple of inches at a time. His diaper-padded bottom landing with a thud on the floor accompanied by a look of shock in his wide blue eyes. But with determination and tenacity, he clumsily stood back up, wavered for a second, then tried again. Sometimes … [Read more...]
Why My Child Lord?
Call to me and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things which you do not know. Jeremiah 33:3 Sometimes we say, "Why me Lord?" When we struggle we may question many things. With our children with various challenges coming at them daily you may have asked yourself, "Why my child Lord?" I am going to let out a little secret here ... I am nearing 50 in the next several … [Read more...]
Happiness Is A Choice
There are times when it feels like our life is one step forward and two steps back. The problem with us as humans is that we tend to concentrate on the two steps back, not the one step forward. If you don’t learn to break it down in a positive way, you will find yourself in constant crisis mode. Early on in our journey we had to grab hold of whatever positive came our way and focus on it. It did … [Read more...]
The Googolplex of Disability, or, How Many Times I Have to Repeat Myself
I’m going to be honest. I took high school calculus because my best friend was taking it, and I needed to prove I was as smart as she was. I was very insecure, and what’s worse, I hated math. But I did get something good from all those numbers: a B- and a neat little tidbit: A “googol” is 10 to the power of 100. The “googolplex” is significantly larger: 10 to the power of a googol - 10googol, or … [Read more...]
My Thanks to the Stranger
Years ago the grocery store was the last place I wanted to go with my son with autism. Now, it's the place I don't want to leave. I followed my son into the tiny grocery, his steps bouncing so high that I thought he might lift right off the ground. He dashed behind the counter and slipped off his coat so that everyone could see the store logo on his shirt. Max is so proud to put on that shirt … [Read more...]