I get regular emails from Age of Autism, and
this post really got to me. It's basically about how something as difficult as Autism becomes your "norm." And then, out of nowhere, you get slapped in the face with the reminder that not everyone lives like you do.
My moment came at the end of Dagan's second grade year, when his class had a picnic. When I got to his school, Dagan was talking to a group of boys from his class. They weren't exactly ignoring him, but they didn't show him much attention either. I put a blanket on the ground justs at the edge of the shadee talked while Dagan ate his lunch.
Afterwards, he wanted to play again. By this time, all the kids were finished eating, and the playground was chaotic. I watched him try again and again to get his classmates to play. Some would for a minute and then they'd run off with someone else. Most wouldn't even acknowledge him. So he entertained himself with reenactments of various Star Wars and Spiderman scenarios, and seemed to be perfectly fine.
But I couldn't help wondering if he even noticed it, or if he's curious about why the kids don't want to play with him. That's the part that makes me sad. I don't want him to be hurt, but there's nothing I can do about the other kids.
This is our normal. I'd do anything to make growing up easier on him. Now I just have to figure out how to do that.
