Learning Autism

A good friend of mine has a brother just a few years younger than us with autism. When it comes to finding a cure, he feels conflicted. He told my friend that by saying there needs to be a cure for autism, it means there's something wrong with him, and he doesn't feel like there is. It is only with this experience that I'm first learning to truly appreciate what he means.

I work with really wonderful adults. I do feel very sad sometimes that they have boundaries which keep them from interacting in society the way average people do, partly because they deserve to have the same experiences, and partly because the rest of us deserve to get to know them. But another part of me thinks that to say there's something wrong with this group is unfair and inaccurate. They're not incomplete people, there's nothing about them that is wrong or bad, and enough of them have told me about their beloved families and pets to prove that we aren't so different. I'm still realizing what this means to me, but for now I just feel so incredibly blessed that I have gotten to know a group of people that most don't get to meet.

With all of my experience, I am often asked my opinion on various autism topics. As the resident expert in my peer group, I always respond with, "I'm not an autism expert, but from what I know..." and I now have something more concrete than that to offer: if you haven't heard the news, the original study saying that vaccines cause autism has been retracted.

Here is an excellent article talking about the latest on autism and the progress that has been happening in the field. It's pretty interesting stuff!

And now for the fun part of the blog- the adorable and hilarious kids. This week I started working with a new group of children, and they are a scream. When Tine introduces me to the kids, she tries to get them to say my name the way I say it instead of the Belgian pronunciation. One kid took this so much to heart that he kept announcing "Vaaaaalerie....Vaaaaaaalerie" over and over again! When one of the kids in his group came late to the art studio, he pointed at me and said, "Vaaaaaalerie!!" He also jumped in shock when I told him I was from America. "That's faaaar!"

Another little guy who I worked with last week told me very matter-of-factly on Wednesday, "I only speak the language I know." Alright, kiddo. Got it.

That's all for now, let me know if you have questions or thoughts on autism- I'm happy to discuss!

xoxo
kw