Every little accomplishment should be celebrated. So I’m celebrating!
I’m going to begin here with full disclosure: even though we have known Mateo and loved him from before he was born, we, as a family, have only been truly getting to know him for the past two years or so. They didn’t live in Belize, so our contact and interaction was limited to videos and calls and emails – we knew about him but didn’t really know him – if you understand what I mean.
Since the summer of 2018… my, how we’ve grown! We are nowhere near autism experts, nor do we come close to knowing how to manage Teo the way his mama does, but our little family has definitely learned a few things from this kid.
I’ve written a bit about Mateo’s struggles and challenges. Generally, even though his life has been mainly therapies, Mateo really is a happy kid. Today, I want to introduce you to a big part of who he is – the happy, fun side.
“I’m not broken. Just because you can’t understand me does not mean I’m not communicating”
Last year when I came home, my favorite niece (yes, she is the only one) asked to take Mateo to meet her friends. She wanted to introduce him since she had been trying to explain to them about him and autism. But some couldn’t understand or grasp the term ‘non-verbal’. To help explain that term, I thought I’d take you through the journey of our quest for spoken language.
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“Once you learn to appreciate the small victories there is no need for a finish line.”
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The symbol for Autism is the Puzzle Piece. There’s some debate about changing it, but to be to honest, the puzzle piece always seemed perfect to me. My son isn’t missing a piece. Hell no! But there are just so many unanswered questions about Autism - exact causes, why one therapy works for one child but not for another, how best to manage behaviors, etc. There are so many unanswered questions - which for me, makes Autism one big puzzle piece. Also, just about every day I learn something new about my son. He’s not a puzzle; he’s just THAT impressive that it’s taking me longer to truly understand him. I mean, he is my son after all.
I can tell you one thing that we do know- we know each other. Autism Moms and Dads - we can recognize the tired eyes, the inability to truly relax, the amazingness of every small accomplishment, the wonder in our gaze as we look at our kiddos. We can see that in each other.