Autism

A Different Kind of Story

Once upon a time there lived a young boy in a strange and magical place. It was filled with delightful and scary sounds all blended together, and with multitudes of colors and smells and tastes, all of which made him smile. It was a happy place, a comfortable place, yet at times very frightening. He shared his life with his big sister, but she lived in a far different place, even though they lived on the same street in the same town and shared the same roof.

In the course of events, he and his sister came to live with an old couple, but he brought his happy place along with him. The old woman was soft and gentle, but she could be firm when he forgot that she didn't live in the same place as he. And she cooked just right for his tastes, and made sure he had all he wanted, sometimes even allowing him to eat too much. So much his belly would hurt, feeling like it would burst. But she knew he was growing, and quickly, and needed all that good food to be able to not only grow, but to give him enough energy to be able to move about nonstop in both his magical world and the world they lived in.

The old man towered over him, but that never gave him reason to be afraid. The old man's hands were bent and twisted, and he walked with a limp, yet the boy knew he would be safe in the old man's presence, even when his sometimes scratchy voice was raised slightly and took on a firm, almost harsh tone. He enjoyed sitting on the old woman's lap, especially in the mornings when he missed the warmth and softness of his bed. But he also loved sitting on the old man's lap, or beside him in his massive rocking chair, feeling the strength of his arms, and the roughness of his whiskers. He even loved sitting in that chair by himself, rocking gently back and forth, sharing in his mind the times he spent with the old man sitting there.

But they and his sister still didn't live in his happy place, he was there all alone. When he tried to share his place, they just didn't understand what he was trying to tell them. They tried, and at times seemed to understand, but he knew they really didn't, even though they were happy that he wanted to share. So he worked hard at trying to learn how to tell them, but without giving up his joyous spot. He knew, as they did, that the day would come when he could share with them all the special things he saw, and heard, and felt.

All it would take was time, and effort, and love. For that reason, he was almost always happy, and smiling, and full of love and joy. He only cried when he really wanted to tell them something from his place, and couldn't. Or when they kept him from doing what he wanted, but he knew it was because of their love for him, and their desire to protect him, to keep him from harm. They always made it a point to let him know those things, but he couldn't tell them he understood, he could only show them with a big smile and a hug.

The time this story takes place in now, and that boy is our grandson, who lives in the world of autism. It isn't a really scary place for him, but it is, at times, scary for us. But we never let him know of our fears, and do what we can to help him learn to live in our world without surrendering his world completely. He has much to teach us, as we have much to teach him. We don't expect him to abandon his world, because it is part of him, and he is filled with a great sense of adventure.

We want him to be able to enjoy our world as well. He is bright, and quick, and yearns to adapt, to learn, to grow. After all, isn't that what we want all children to do? To live in our world? To be able to adapt, to learn, to grow? But we must never forget to allow them their special places, their happy places, the places where they feel most comfortable and at ease, even if we don't understand where or what that place is. Even if it's the world of autism.

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