Behind the Disability

Good morning everyone,

I bet you're wondering why Ryan has the pink umbrella inthe car window.

We went fishing one day at Coon Forks and stopped by Teps Drive In for lunch. Grandma was with us so Ryan was in the back. If you're like me you need an extra person along so that if you have to visit a restroom, there is someone to hang with your special someone.

This day the sun was warm and the flies were bugging him (pun intended). I glimpsed the thinking person behind all the disability crap as he poked the umbrella out the open window and opened it for a sunshade.

For those of you reading this, yes. It's just that simple. To see a normal action on the part of your kid really is something to write home about. Sometimes even if that action is something that is a tad manipulative. For example. Amy was Ryan's third grade teacher. Ryan and I both loved her. She had three or four boys of her own so recognized "boy behavior" which I loved. Since I grew up with brothers and mainly boy cousins, guys don't hold much mystery for me either.

At any rate, one day she approached me and asked if we could work on Ryan learning to tie his shoes. Apparently, after lunchtime and recesses, Ryan came in and took off his boots. He then put one foot on each desk and had two little girls working on each foot to get his tennis shoes back on. I laughed. Being Amy, she smiled and wanted in on the joke.

The fact was, Ryan's g'ma had spent every moment she was with him teaching him to tie his shoes and he'd learned the task some time ago. He was loving the little girl attention. We both laughed at the "little boy" thing. She wasn't offended and totally understood my perverse pleasure that Ryan had managed to get himself a little positive attention.

He did tie his own shoes after that, a task mastery that still comes and goes. Once again, we saw the child behind all that crud that is his disabilities. Sometimes I'll even do a double take. But it's gone. I wish other people would look beyond that disability. I wish that others would get to know him and see those tiny flashes of Ryan.

Behind the disability, there's an amazing young man.

Have a great day. I might not blog tomorrow because we're on the fly. But I'll be back on Sunday. Hang with me then!

Much love and joy,

Karen