“A long time ago” must be followed by “in a galaxy far, far away.”

“Cuvvies!” is a real word…in a pretend world.

“The sense of touch” is a cue to the other participant in the various hair-playing games we have.

And every new game has its own ritual that must be followed. Every time.

“What we have?” I hear often.  “Nintendo or Sony?” When he knows very well we have both.  The questions are constant, the answers must be the same…or when they aren’t, we can laugh over “being weird” but still, he must have the reassurance that yes, the answers are always the same.  Our world is still as it was, but with a twist of humor.

That saving twist of humor is what flavors my days and delights my memory.  Humor distracts a discontented boy and helps his family come out of the sometimes frustrating hours of someone for whom reason is not the same as it is for the more neuronormal mind.

“He’s tapping my hair,” leads to a circle of hair-tapping, where we count to three, and all say, at the same time, “He’s tapping my hair,” while tapping the hair of the person next to us and having our own tapped in return.

Games that involve the senses.  Games that involve patterns. Games that have rituals.  Daily interactions that take time but are also ways to bring back a little lad from an angry place, or a mental space of irritation that has no real solution.

Humor.  It’s the snappy twist that saves the moment.  I am thankful unto God that I have been shown how to use it to good effect.

Tags: Autism, children, humor, Life, managing, Parenting

It’s not for the faint of heart.

Requiring the utter surrender of one’s life for a time, and the constant giving way for the better of others at other times, it is a job that will teach you the value of sacrifice.  The rewards of thinking for another human being with utter devotion.

It’s more than just changing diapers and doing laundry; it’s growing hearts, minds and spirits. Not just those entrusted to your care, but also your own.

Sometimes, the job is thrust upon one “by mistake.”  Unplanned for, it happens when one wasn’t ready.  Sometimes, the job is sought after for years and years before it is attained.

Incredible capacity for love will be grown.  Incredible capacity for absorbing pain and still coming to the aid of another.  Incredible capacity for giving…giving…giving.

And for receiving untold depths of joy, amazement and sheer, heart-stopping moments of “Wow!”

The job will forever and ever and ever change your life, even after the day to day business of it has ceased.  Duties vary, but also remain constant for years.

You will not be perfect at it all the time, and even when you are, there are no awards.  No raises in pay.  No promotions. The job title is always the same.  And though it will grate at times, and you might wish to run off for a weekend on occasion, you will miss the job enormously.

And if you do it right… You work yourself right into retirement.  With a smile on your face and a sigh of satisfaction.  Retired, but never fully “done.”

May God bless us all who are in the trenches of parenting!  :)  Keep up the good work, people, and know that your name will live on.  May it shine long and with all the best memories you can impart to it.

Tags: children, joy, Parenting