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...]
Saving Up the Hard Stuff
“So much will change,” they say, pointing to your swollen belly, nearly giddy with the kind of knowledge that only experience supplies. “Your life will never be the same!” I know, you think smugly. I’ve heard it, I’ve read it, it’s the mantra you mothers all repeat. But they’re right, of course. While things will change, many of those changes are expected: those that arise from the training of … [Read more...]
Autism and Church: It’s a Good Thing, Part II
Back in December I wrote about the frustration and embarrassment of a particular church service with our 30-year-old son, Joel, who has autism. Joel could not sit still that day, blew out the Advent candles, muttered under his breath the entire service, walked into the bathroom and flushed the toilet several times (you have to understand that this is a very small church, and our one bathroom is … [Read more...]
Parents, God Has Not Forgotten Your Dreams
A month ago I took a huge risk with my special needs family. And it paid off. It began almost twenty years ago when, as a 21 year old exchange student in Europe, I discovered the needs of people across the globe through weekly prayer meetings. My heart began to beat for villages with no clean water, societal violence toward women, entire groups of people ignored and left to die because of their … [Read more...]
For the Times When Others Don’t Get It
Dear special needs parent, Some people will never get what it is like to walk in our shoes. No matter how many times we try to explain our situation, our child, the challenges our family has to face—no matter how many details we share—the reality is that most people won’t get it. And some people might think we are exaggerating, or that we are not doing enough, and we might feel judged by their … [Read more...]