Posted by TwoParents on July 25, 2005 at 04:51:11:
We were shopping in Wal-Mart last week when we noticed the "Back to School" signs and realized that this fall, for the first time in 15 years, we don't have a child going back to school. Our autistic son completed his job transition out of the schools and is working full-time now at Friendship Industries.
As with so many things involving autism, there were mixed emotions. Our son is a handsome fellow with a beautiful voice, and very muscial. We were sure he would have been in honors choirs, but for his disability. As it was, he took a couple of semesters of "beginner's chorus" at high school but the choir directors made it clear he was not ready to move up to the more accomplished groups. Even with beginner's chorus, we worried at concerts. (Would he have a behavioral problem on stage?) Thankfully, the answer was "no."
Naturally, we have some regret about what might have been. There's no use denying that. But we're also quite pleased with what our son has become -- a real team worker at Friendship Industries, and a social person who enjoys greeting people, even if in a mechanical and routinized way. He has done so much more than we had thought possible when he was first diagnosed. (At that time, he had little speech and very little expressive language of any kind.)
A great many special education teachers, aides, bus drivers, principals and peers helped our son a lot. To them we're grateful. We tried to thank them as we went along with encouraging words and little end-of-year presents, but we know those thanks aren't adequate. Still, for all you special educators out there: thanks for all you do.
So it's with mixed emotions but a lot of gratitude that we wish everyone else: happy Back to School. "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year."